


A Taste of Summer

by Piggycats_be_mooing



Series: Haikyuu School Tour [3]
Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Adopted Children, Aobajousai, Author Is Sleep Deprived, Bittersweet Ending, Butlers, Childhood Friends, Everyone Needs A Hug, F/M, Family Drama, Florists, Flowers, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, I'm Bad At Tagging, Karasuno, M/M, OC insert, OC is rich, Original Character(s), Pining, Pining Original character(s), Rich students, Slow Build, Slow Burn, Sports, Volleyball, Volleyball Dorks in Love, We Die Like Men, like really rich, more tags to be added probably
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-11-29
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-09 18:34:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 23
Words: 34,296
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27780829
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Piggycats_be_mooing/pseuds/Piggycats_be_mooing
Summary: (OC x Yamaguchi)“I told you, didn’t I?” He gave her a shit eating grin. “I won’t love you.”---Frankly speaking, Kanehara Hiromitchi is not a good person.He has everything he could ever want, money, looks, smarts yet he finds himself aimless and with an absolutely horrible reputation.Hiromitchi is not a believer of love. It's fickle, pointless and more trouble than it's worth. Look at him for example. He is perfectly happy without it, he doesn't need love and never will.In fact he has made it his personal goal to 'help' people realize that love will only let you down and the best way to do that is to break hearts.Hiromitchi's next project? Yamaguchi Tadashi.“Since that Tsukki guy doesn’t want him, I’ll take Yamaguchi for myself.”
Relationships: Hinata Shouyou/Kageyama Tobio, Iwaizumi Hajime & Oikawa Tooru, Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru, Karasuno & Original Male Character(s), Original Female Character & Original Male Character, Original Female Character/Original Male Character, Tsukishima & Original Male Character(s), Tsukishima Kei/Yamaguchi Tadashi, Volleyball/Everyone, Yamaguchi Tadashi/Original Male Character(s)
Series: Haikyuu School Tour [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1894423
Comments: 28
Kudos: 82





	1. The Captive Prince

**Author's Note:**

> I feel like this one is going to be a bit harder than I originally thought, I've written a bunch of female OCs but this time I decided to go for a guy OC because why not. Gotta shake it up. lol  
> \--  
> Again I'm not a volleyball guru by any means so apologies in advance if things are incorrect.  
> ANYWAY,  
> Happy reading and I hope you enjoy!

“I hate you!” The girl swung her hand and slapped her now ex boyfriend’s cheek.

“I told you, didn’t I?” He gave her a shit eating grin. “I won’t love you.”

The girl stormed off with tears in her eyes. “I hope you’re miserable for the rest of your life, Hiromitchi!”

As soon as his ex left the room, Hiromitchi rubbed his cheek and sighed. “She hit harder than the last one.” Hiromitchi pulled his long ash blonde hair back into a loose ponytail. The relationship lasted a little over two months but considering Hiromitchi’s track record that was a pretty long time. _I wonder what rumors will float around next. I bet it’s that I have seventy-five side chicks._ He chuckled amused.

“You look mighty happy for someone who was just slapped. Was it a girl this time?” A tall brunette scoffed and sat on Hiromitchi’s desk. “How long was that? One month, two months, two days? Does it really matter anymore? Who cares?” She leaned down and looked deep into his inky indigo eyes. “The point is, you’re happier now. Also, what is with that ponytail? It’s hideous. I thought I taught you better.” The girl shook her head then untied his hair.

Hiromitchi’s silken hair reached down to his upper back now that it was let down from its bindings. Originally, he planned to cut his hair earlier in the year, however he soon found that long hair suited him rather well. “I don’t recall anything of the sort.” Hiromitchi struggled to keep his laughter stifled. “Looks like you’ll have to do my hair for me, oh benevolent Sanaki Miyu.”

Miyu feigned hurt. “Mitchi, why must you be so cruel? I’ve given you special permission to call the great and hopelessly attractive me, Usagi and you barely even use it.” Despite her complaints she continued to style his hair into a considerably better ponytail. “Besides, I think I'm much cuter and hotter than whatever-what’s-her-face.” She batted her eyelashes for extra effect. “Right?”

Truthfully speaking, Usagi wasn’t wrong. Everything from her green eyes to her brunette hair to her pink lips seemed to match perfectly with her hourglass figure. She was the kind of girl that other girls loved to hate. Hiromitchi couldn’t blame them either. Miyu’s face and a little cleavage could get people jumping through hoops for her.

As soon as Miyu was finished doing Hiromitchi’s hair, he stood up slowly and stretched. He was a whole foot taller than she was and considerably leaner. “I can’t deny that you are a beautiful person, but only on the outside. If not for your trashy personality you could have been popular instead of infamous.” Hiromitchi shrugged but didn’t hide the clear smirk he gave her. 

Miyu pouted then playfully punched his arm. “Says you. You are just as bad as me.”

“Whaaaaat, those are all rumors…” Hiromitchi looked away awkwardly. “…mostly.” Hiromitchi knew his reputation was probably in the gutter, when he was a first year it wasn’t too bad, but somehow it became a downhill slope and by the time he became a second-year student, his reputation was unsalvageable. Almost all of the bad rumors floating around him were false, but no matter how much Hiromitchi denied them no one believed him.

Not saying anything more, the pair walked out of the empty classroom, it was about to be the end of lunch break, so they needed to move quickly. Miyu tilted her head, “See you after school?”

“Nah, I have a prior engagement.” A flash of green and freckles caught Hiromitchi’s eye. _What an interesting hair color._

“Girlfriend?”

Hiromitchi turned back around to face his friend. He raised an eyebrow. “No”

“Boyfriend?” She tried again.

“Also no.”

“Secret love affair!?” Miyu gasped dramatically and covered her agape mouth with her hands. “And you didn’t even tell me?! Your one and only best friend.” She snickered. “Well, your only friend.”

This time Hiromitchi rolled his eyes. “Family.” The words seemed to drag off his tongue and left a bitter taste in his mouth which went unnoticed by Miyu. _If you can call them that._ He brushed away the thought and then split ways with Miyu. “See ya’ tomorrow, Usagi.”

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----AFTER SCHOOL-----**

“Welcome home, Young Master.” A man wearing a sleek butler outfit opened the beige door and held his hand out to receive the bag from Hiromitchi. With his slicked back brown hair and a neat appearance, the man didn’t look a day older than twenty-five, despite his official documents stating that he was turning thirty-six this year.

Hiromitchi nodded then without hesitation handed his school bag to the butler. “Thanks, Saito.” The interior of the house was rather grand, far too big for two people. The flooring was pearl colored hardwood which unfortunately matched the equally white walls. The only contrasting color was a drab charcoal. The modern design of furniture prioritized the appearance of the house rather than the comfort. If the house décor could be described in one word it would be ‘monochrome’.

“What time am I expecting the call?” Hiromitchi briskly made his way to the study and removed his school blazer on the way there, he turned the corner and the next to go was his cream-colored vest. He adjusted his shirt to seem as presentable as he could then sat himself down on the desk chair. Unlike the rest of the house the study was the only room that looked well used. The walls were lined with full bookshelves. The mahogany furniture -although extravagant- matched the overall warm feeling of the study. It was vastly different to the rest of the cold interior.

“The Ma’am and Sir will be calling at four” Saito looked at his watch. “You have thirty minutes; I’ll prepare some coffee.” Without waiting for an answer Saito took his leave and disappeared out of the room.

As soon as Saito left, Hiromitchi sighed and slouched back on the leather desk chair. “I really don’t want to answer…” He grimaced. Every time he got a call it always left an unpleasant feeling churning within him. “Should I pretend to be busy?” Of course, he knew that was impossible, there was no way he could ignore a call and get away unscathed.

Faster than Hiromitchi had come up with the idea he dismissed it. As much as he hated it, it was an obligation that he couldn’t escape. _Even if I did successfully miss this call Saito would probably rat me out. He is technically their butler._ He scoffed internally then sat up to turn on the computer.

After a few minutes Saito returned with a steaming mug of black coffee. No sugar or creamer was brought up with him. Hiromitchi glanced at the cup then took it gratefully. “Thanks.” He waved Saito away.

“I’ll take my leave. If you need anything during the call, I’ll be outside the door.” Saito exited the room just as quietly as he came.

Hiromitchi put the drink to his lips to make sure the temperature was safe to drink, once he confirmed it to be alright, Hiromitchi chugged down the coffee. A shudder ran through his body as he emptied the cup. Hiromitchi hated bitter things, it wasn’t a flavor he tolerated very well. Rather than a black coffee he would much rather have a hot chocolate or a mocha. But appearances, right?

The computer started to ring from the incoming video call. With each ring, Hiromitchi felt an impending doom wash over him, he hastily made himself presentable then ever so slowly answered the call. A man who looked rather remarkably like an older version of himself -minus the eye color- and a woman who was nothing alike, were present on the screen. “Aunt, Uncle. It has been a little while.”

The woman seemed to scrutinize her nails before she spoke. “It has been hasn’t it?”

“Hiromitchi, I trust there has been no issues?” His Uncle’s voice was cold, but it was much preferred over the honey-soaked words of his Aunt.

“Correct.” Hiromitchi’s words came out as flat and dead as he felt. “The branch is doing well, and the profits are steadily increasing…” He paused for a moment unsure of if he wanted to tell them the rest. “...However, there seems to be a new trend of formal wear designs and it would be best to accommodate to those trends.”

His Uncle nodded. “That does seem to be the case. I’ll have Rei look into that.”

Suddenly Hiromitchi’s Aunt perked up. “Speaking of Rei, you know that his birthday is coming up again, right?” Her voice was sweet, but her words were anything but. “Don’t even think about coming back to Tokyo to visit him. Rei is very busy and will not have time to entertain a distraction like yourself. Of course, I'm only saying this because I care and love the both of you. I only want the best for my son and my nephew.” She tucked a stray hair behind her ear and smiled without a trace of malice. “We don’t want a repeat of last year. You made quite the ruckus.”

After what seemed like an eternity, Hiromitchi’s uncle spoke up. “That is all we needed to discuss.” His eyes narrowed and his voice dropped to a frigid hostility. “Do not disgrace us. Despite what your parents did, you are Kanehara Hiromitchi and every action of yours reflects on the Kanehara company and Rei’s position as the company successor.”

Hiromitchi simply nodded and didn’t dare say anything in his defense. It was always like that. The relationships within his ‘family’ were held taunt and the strings were suffocating. “Yes, Aunt Clara and Uncle Gekku.”

“Good. We will call again in the future. Saito will schedule it for you.”

As soon as he said his farewells, Hiromitchi ended the call. Once he was off camera, he closed his eyes and slumped back in his chair. He hated every moment of the conversation and was more than glad that it was over. Unfortunately, the call itself had caused a rather nasty headache. “Maybe some fresh air will help.”


	2. Inventory Space

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Enter Yamaguchi!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know all the swans in England belong to the queen?
> 
> Happy reading~

“Yes, one marshmallow hot chocolate” Hiromitchi handed the cashier his credit card. “That’ll be all, thanks.” It was a little chilly outside and he was seriously regretting not bringing a jacket of some sort. When he was walking home from school it didn’t seem that cold but considering that it was almost the end of the day, Hiromitchi really shouldn’t have been surprised.

Once Hiromitchi received his order he waved goodbye to the cashier and barista before he went out to brave the cold once more. He didn’t really have a set destination on where to go, nor did he have a specific route he liked to walk, he mostly found himself wandering aimlessly. When he looked up, the sky was filled with hues of orange, red and pink as the daylight began to wane, there was something about a late afternoon walk that always seemed to calm him down. It was always mentally draining to have a conversation with his ‘family’.

Eventually Hiromitchi managed to reach a place he recognized. It was the park. Unlike the few others around the area, this one was devoid of children; the only noise he heard was the rustling of the leaves as a cool breeze passed through them.

_This is nice._ He sat on a park swing slowly drinking his hot chocolate. Despite the colder weather it was still pleasant to be out. He was able to hear the sounds of nature and nothing else. It was incredibly different to the silence in the house he resided in, which of course was greatly appreciated.

Much to his dismay the peace didn’t last quite as long as he wanted it to.

“Tsukki! Hold on!”

Hiromitchi turned to the voice. _Oh? That looks interesting, it’s him again._ The speaker was a tall green haired boy with an array of freckles that speckled his face. Although his hair was a bit of a mess it seemed to suit him. He was a little scrawny, but the unknown boy appeared to have a cuter aesthetic to him.

The green haired boy trotted over behind a taller spectacled blonde. “Sorry it took so long.” He smiled then stood up straight to walk next to -who Hiromitchi assumed- his friend. “Thanks for waiting Tsukki.”

“Let’s go, Yamaguchi.” Tsukki began to walk once more, he was taller than his friend but not by much, somehow his presence alone was enough to irritate Hiromitchi slightly. Perhaps it was the antagonizing smirk on this Tsukki’s face that riled him up.

Hiromitchi finished his drink, _Yamaguchi…I feel like I've heard that before._ He stood up off the swing and stretched. It was none of his business anyway. Just as he was about to leave, Hiromitchi’s eyes found themselves scrutinizing the freckled boy.

He grimaced. It was obvious to him how much Yamaguchi liked Tsukki. He had seen that look before, the not so subtle secretive glances of longing and adoration and the unmatched devotion they contained. It was a face he had seen many times directed at him from previous relationships. _They are never going to get together._ Hiromitchi scoffed and rolled his eyes _. Why can’t he see that it’s impossible?_

A few seconds passed by before a mischievous smirk found its way to Hiromitchi’s face. Truthfully, no matter how much he denied it, he always felt a tinge of pride when someone displayed that expression towards him. Of course, it wouldn’t be fun if the person had feelings for him from the start, that would be far too boring. He wasn’t one to shy away from a challenge.

Hiromitchi tried to suppress the grin to no avail. He needed something to help pass the time and what better way to do that than playing with a new toy. “Since that Tsukki guy doesn’t want him, I’ll take Yamaguchi for myself.”

**_-_ ** **\----THE NEXT MORNING-----**

Hiromitchi grumbled as he reached the halfway point from his house to the school. He opted to walk because it was a nice day out, but he was not a fan of having to do his club duties early in the morning. Admittedly it was his fault, the day prior he may or may not have ditched his duties and left for home without a care in the world.

Once he arrived at school, it was still early enough that the only other students on campus were those in athletic clubs. He gave kudos to those students, he himself could never achieve such a feat. If Hiromitchi had it his way, he would rather sleep for as long as possible.

The school was a fair amount bigger than what he had expected back when he was a first year; it was not the largest school he had seen, but it was a fairly decent size. There were two large rectangular buildings which stood out the most. The larger of the two was the main building, with its off-white walls it caused the multitude of windows to stand out against the background. The large analog clock face dead center of the building was painted with just the slightest tint of blue.

The smaller building was in a completely separate area to the others, but it was connected to the school gym. The entire building was used for the sports clubs. There were club rooms, showers, changing areas, storage units – the building was honestly the entire package.

Hiromitchi sighed and took out the keys for the storage unit. While he did not look like the type, he was part of a club, sort of. Someone had to do item inventory. As always Hiromitchi saved the gym hall storage for last, he didn’t really want to meet whatever club was playing in the morning, but of course it just so happened that he finished much faster than usual.

The sound of yelling and bouncing balls emanated from the gym echoing through the outdoor walkway. It was much louder than usual, though most of it was yelling. Hiromitchi peeked inside through the window before entering. The members of the boys’ volleyball team were scattered around the hall, he recognized a few of the second years, he was pretty sure some of them had the same classes as he did.

“Toss to me!” The shortest orange haired student yelled and bounced. Out of all the players he seemed to be the most energetic and he definitely had the biggest personality- so to speak. Despite just seeing the guy it was easy to tell that he was the most troublesome.

“No!” A different student also involved in the shouting match held the ball away from his teammate. “We don’t need you to win.” A permanent scowl seemed to be imprinted on his face which only served to make himself look even more intimidating.

From the other side of the court the quiet snickers were easily noticeable. _Ah, nevermind. That guy will be the most irritating._ It was ‘Tsukki’. Hiromitchi was somehow surprised that he did anything as physically taxing as volleyball or any sport at all if he was being honest. He didn’t want to be prejudiced or anything, but don’t most smart people with glasses join the chess club or something?

Hiromitchi almost, almost considered just skipping the hall until he saw a tuft of green and a freckled face standing among the third years. _Oh? Yamaguchi plays too?_ He smirked then went to the door. _What a stroke of luck._ He knocked on the gym door before opening it. “Hello, I'm here to do quick inventory for the storage room.” Hiromitchi smiled affably and held up his clipboard to prove his goal.

“Ah yes, go on ahead.” The brown-haired student standing between the arguing first years walked towards Hiromitchi. He seemed to have a more dependable presence than the others. “I’m Sawamura, Karasuno’s boys’ volleyball captain. Nice to meet you.” He held out his hand.

_That’s why he seems more reliable, he is the team captain._ Without missing a beat Hiromitchi accepted the handshake and introduced himself. “Just call me Hiromitchi.” He rubbed the back of his neck pretending to be bashful, “My last name is a little weird so if you could just use my first name, I’d be really grateful.”

“Of course, Hiromitchi.” Sawamura nodded then gestured to the storage room. “If you want any help let us know.”

Hiromitchi gave him a wave before he entered the storage room to count. Before he made any moves, he actually needed to do his job. Hiromitchi sighed, there was always so much in the room that it took a rather long time to get even halfway finished.

“Uhm, hello. I was wondering if you would like some help.” Yamaguchi seemed to appear behind Hiromitchi. “I, uh… I know the captain offered you some earlier, but there is a lot of stuff in here I was worried it might be frustrating.”

_Oh, that’s actually really sweet._ Hiromitchi forcefully pushed down his initial reaction and replaced it with a new one. There was no way he needed help nor wanted any help for that matter, there were appearances he needed kept up. Though perhaps this was the most opportune moment Hiromitchi was hoping for. Yamaguchi’s blonde friend was nowhere in sight so they both stood alone in the dim room.


	3. Drifting Clouds

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiromitchi and Yamaguchi talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know that puppies have a peak cuteness level?   
> They are at their cutest at 6-8weeks old!
> 
> Enjoy!

“Well, if you aren't busy then I guess I’ll have to trouble you for some help.” Hiromitchi chuckled awkwardly. “There is quite a lot in here. I may have overestimated myself.” He was still trying to figure out what Yamaguchi’s ideal type of guy was so Hiromitchi tried his best to emulate a few different characteristics to find out which one he liked the most. The first few were bashful and awkward, followed by cute and enthusiastic. He had a feeling Yamaguchi might prefer the more forward types, but it was still too early to try those out. Hiromitchi didn’t want to scare Yamaguchi away before he even got the chance to start.

Together, the two boys began to rummage through the excess of equipment and count each item. Surprisingly, Yamaguchi was a great help. It’s not to say Hiromitchi expected him to be bad, he just wasn’t expecting him to be as good as he was. “Thanks for the help…uh...” He waited in attempts to prompt Yamaguchi to introduce himself.

“Yamaguchi. Yamaguchi Tadashi, a first year.”

Hiromitchi grinned. “I'm Hiromitchi. Thanks for helping out your upperclassman, Yamaguchi.” There was no need to introduce himself as a second year after implying it with his words. “Do you enjoy playing volleyball?” Hiromitchi was still scoping out the topics that would create conversation, he first decided to go for something safe.

“I do!” Yamaguchi chirped happily. “I enjoy it a lot.”

Hiromitchi continued writing the numbers on his inventory sheet. “Did you always like it or was it a whim sort of thing?” Another good way to befriend someone was to ask them about themselves. Generally speaking, it’s easier to get a read on someone that way.

Yamaguchi paused for a moment before answering. “Well uh, I wanted to join a sports club when I was younger, but I decided against soccer and basketball because the other players were big and scary. Volleyball seemed like the safer choice.”

“That’s really cool!” Hiromitchi nodded along and did his best to seem like the most invested listener, well he was the only listener, so it wasn’t too hard. “I think it’s really admirable that you stuck with the sport for so long.”

Yamaguchi blushed a little flustered by Hiromitchi’s words. He himself didn’t think it too much of a big deal, he just continued doing what he liked with the person he liked the most. He certainly never thought of it as something cool. “So, uh what about you? Do you play any sports?”

Hiromitchi expected this question would come up eventually and there were two ways it could go. He could say yes and relate to him that way, or he could say no but act like he was interested in the sport. Clearly, one answer was better than the other. “I don’t really play sports unless you count light exercise.” He hesitated for dramatic effect. “But I am a bit interested in volleyball… O-of course not as a serious player or anything! Just for fun, you know? But I don’t know the rules nor have anyone to play with.” Honestly speaking, Hiromitchi had no interest in sport whatsoever but he was in this for the long run. He had a feeling that winning Yamaguchi’s heart wouldn’t be as easy as the ones prior.

“You should join the club! We can all help you out!” Yamaguchi offered.

“Well...” Hiromitchi looked away and mumbled slightly. “I thought it’d be really nice if you were the one who taught me.” He fiddled with the pen in his hand. “I'm not too good with a lot of people and I don’t have the time needed to be dedicated to a club.” Putting into consideration the general overview of Yamaguchi’s personality, Hiromitchi anticipated his oh so kind offer.

“M-me?!”

Hiromitchi nodded. Each year level didn’t interact that much with each other so it would be hard to find the time to hang out. He needed to play an active part in Yamaguchi’s life if he wanted to even have a chance at his goal. “Pleaseeee” Hiromitchi made the best pleading face he could.

“Well, if it’s ok with you.”

\---------

Despite their constant chatter it didn’t take too long to finish up with their task and go to their respective classes. “Yamaguchi.”

“Yes, Tsukki?” Yamaguchi looked up from his work towards his best friend. The teacher had allowed the class to choose their own partner for their assignments so naturally Yamaguchi found himself beside Tsukishima. “What’s wrong?” He furrowed his eyebrows concerned.

Tsukishima adjusted his glasses but immediately changed his answer before he said it. “Nevermind.” As much as he wanted to tell Yamaguchi about the bad feeling he got from Hiromitchi, he decided against it until he was a little more certain. Usually Tsukishima would have no problem telling Yamaguchi the cold hard truths, however considering that his best friend spent a good chunk of class talking about Hiromitchi; it would probably be better to refrain from any rash statements.

\--------

Hiromitchi slumped forward on his desk and sighed. It was the last class of the day and it seemed to go on forever. The teacher’s voice was both slow and monotonous enough that Hiromitchi wouldn’t be opposed to sleeping. Rather than counting the seconds on the clock he began to formulate his game plan. He knew his goal was to steal Yamaguchi’s heart, but the question was how he was planning on doing so. In an incredible stroke of luck, he was able to meet him in the morning before school and managed to come up with a reason to keep meeting the green haired boy. But then what, pretend to be exactly Yamaguchi’s type? But what is his type? Hiromitchi played with the tips of his hair and looked out the window. _But his type seems to be his childhood friend, and I don’t want to be some carbon copy of him._

“Hey, Usagi!” Hiromitchi whisper shouted at his friend.

Miyu ignored him.

He tried again but this time a little louder. “I said, hey, Usagi!”

“What do you want?” She hissed, equally as quiet. Despite how she looked and acted, she did actually care about passing high school. “We’re in the middle of class.”

“Sanaki! Kanehara! What are the two of you talking about that is so interesting that you have to interrupt my class? Care to share?” The teacher glared at Miyu and Hiromitchi, waiting for an answer. A few seconds passed and still nothing. “Well, if you have nothing to say for yourselves, stand outside the room by the door. You will stay out there until I am finished lecturing. Afterwards you may come back inside.”

Both Miyu and Hiromitchi nodded then got up to take the walk of shame outside the classroom. It wouldn’t be the first time they were caught by a teacher, so at this point both students expected it. But of course, it still didn’t so much as deter the pair from doing it again anyway. “Don’t you think it’s rather counterproductive to kick us out of class like that?” Miyu huffed once she closed the door behind her. “In theory wouldn’t it be better to just keep us in the classroom to continue to learn?”

Hiromitchi shrugged leaning back slightly on the hallway window. “Probably? I mean you know what they say, C’s get degrees!” He snorted then turned to look out at the clear blue sky. _It’s nice out._ Hiromitchi would be lying if he said the good weather didn’t make him consider skipping the rest of the school day, staying cooped up in a classroom was never something he enjoyed.

“But we are almost third years. We need to start thinking of what to do in the future.” Miyu fiddled with the buttons on her black blazer. “At least that’s what the adults say.”

Definitely more than ten minutes passed, and the teacher was yet to let both students back into the classroom. It was obvious that Miyu was getting restless and Hiromitchi was almost ready to just skip class entirely.

Instead of following through with his plan to leave, Hiromitchi instead watched as the fluffy clouds lazily drifted through the sky without a care in the world, perhaps it was something he aspired to do. Of course, Hiromitchi had no idea what to do for the future. He didn’t have anything so magical as a dream. He wasn’t really sure what he even wanted in life. He already had everything he could ever want. Hiromitchi felt a small twinge in his chest that he immediately dismissed. _Whoever said you couldn’t buy happiness clearly didn’t have enough money to buy more stuff._

While he looked out of the window Hiromitchi was able to look through another window that belonged to a different classroom. “That’s a first-year class I believe.” At the very edge of the window he could see the back of Yamaguchi’s head though most of the view was of Tsukishima. A horribly twisted smile found its way to Hiromitchi’s face. “Maybe the first step should be taking that guy’s place.” He murmured softly to himself so Miyu wouldn’t hear. _Tsukishima Kei, was it?_


	4. I Like Your Hands

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hands are pretty

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know that some people are allergic to moon rocks?
> 
> Happy Reading!

Eventually the teacher did allow both Miyu and Hiromitchi back in class to do the assignment that was assigned to them, of course they both had no idea what was going on, but at least they didn’t have to wait in the hallway anymore.

During the time Hiromitchi was supposed to be doing his work, he instead decided to think of ways to seduce Yamaguchi. He would reluctantly admit that seducing people who definitely had no interest in him was something he had never tried; to make things even harder, Hiromitchi was trying to obtain ‘love’ rather than ‘lust’.

Hiromitchi looked up at the clock, there was only two minutes of class left. _Finally, took long enough._ As soon as he heard the bell Hiromitchi hastily packed all his belongings, said a brief ‘see you later’ to Miyu and practically dashed down the stairs to the first year’s classroom.

As soon as the door opened Hiromitchi brushed back a portion of his hair and made the best ‘kind friend’ smile he could muster. “Yamaguchi!” He waved towards the freckled boy with more enthusiasm than he would usually have.

“Hiromitchi?” Yamaguchi’s eyes widened then returned the wave shyly. He wasn’t expecting his new friend to be waiting outside his classroom. “Were you waiting for me?” Yamaguchi knew it sounded a bit conceited but that was the only reason he could come up with.

“Of course. Who else?” Hiromitchi approached the pair and held out his phone for Yamaguchi to take. “I didn’t manage to get your number last time so this was the only other way I could think of that wouldn’t involve having to wait till tomorrow.”

Yamaguchi didn’t notice it before, but as Hiromitchi walked closer he noticed that he was a similar height to Tsukishima. Yamaguchi thought he himself was on the taller side but meeting another person taller than him was a little disheartening. Yamaguchi stealthily examined Hiromitchi while he was walking closer. Now that they both weren’t in the dim lighting it was easier to see the details. Unlike earlier, Hiromitchi had let his ashen hair down from the original ponytail but still kept the hair out of his face with a plain bobby pin. His eyes were in fact a rich purple rather than an inky black or brown, the unusual color matched his appearance well.

“O-oh.” Yamaguchi accepted the phone despite his current flustered self. Even though sharing numbers between friends was such a simple, normal thing, Yamaguchi was still surprised that it was him and not Tsukishima. Usually people would approach him to talk about Tsukishima, in fact it happened so many times that he was practically anticipating it; but this time someone was asking for his phone number and wanted to talk to him. It was such a strange feeling but definitely not a bad one.

Yamaguchi hastily typed up his phone number and saved it to contacts. “Here you go” He smiled and handed the phone back over to Hiromitchi. As he went to receive it, Yamaguchi noticed that his fingers were surprisingly slender, and he had a small mole on the side of his left wrist. Hiromitchi’s hands would be best described as piano hands. Before filtering his words, Yamaguchi voiced his thoughts. “Do you play the piano?”

Hiromitchi was stunned by the sudden question. _That was a little out of the blue._

“I-I mean that you have long fingers and pretty hands that I just assumed, but I didn’t want to assume or anything, I just thought maybe it was a possibility, uhm, sorry for the ramble…” Yamaguchi facepalmed internally.

Hiromitchi tried to suppress a growing grin caused by Yamaguchi’s flustered reaction. “No, music and I don’t really get along.” Hiromitchi noticed a stray hair on Yamaguchi’s face, “I very much so value my hands which is why they are well kept.” He brushed away the strand of hair ever so gently and tucked it behind Yamaguchi’s ear. “I take care of things I like.”

Yamaguchi had no time to recover as he made eye contact with Hiromitchi’s gaze. “O-Oh me too.” His voice was small as he responded.

Tsukishima, noticing Yamaguchi’s distress feigned a pleasant smile and stepped between the pair. “I should hope you take care of things you like. Now if you’ll excuse us, unlike some people, we have important things to do.” Tsukishima really, really didn’t like the atmosphere that was starting to form between his childhood friend and Hiromitchi. He was certain that it wasn’t just him being paranoid but there was definitely something going on and Tsukishima planned to put a stop to whatever it was.

Hiromitchi waved as Yamaguchi was ushered away by Tsukishima. “Damn.” As soon as they were out of earshot and looking away, Hiromitchi dropped his smile. Now he was certain he needed a way around Tsukishima or just cut him out of the equation entirely. Unlike Yamaguchi, it seemed that he was more aware of Hiromitchi’s schemes.

Instead of trying to push for further conversation he turned in the opposite direction and left to make a quick stop to the student council room. He knocked on the door and immediately entered without waiting for a response. “I finished counting inventory.” Besides him there were two other people in the room.

“Just leave it on the table as usual.” A boy with slicked back hair didn’t even bother looking up from his work as he gestured to the large six-person table. The table itself was cluttered with an assortment of papers and books that it was hard to find a place to put one more without tipping over a stack.

“Have you costed out the price of the missing items?” The other occupant was a girl with long flowing silver hair. She was only turning pages of a book but somehow every little gesture she made was filled with a dignity and elegance that could only be achieved by practicing from a young age.

Hiromitchi scoffed and placed a USB on the girl’s desk. “Who do you think I am? Of course, I have.” As soon as he placed it down Hiromitchi turned away with a wave. “Since that’s my job done, I’ll be off. I have more fun things to be doing with my time.”

The girl spoke up before he exited the room. “You should join the student council as the treasurer. We have been missing one for a little over a year now.”

Hiromitchi didn’t stop walking. “No matter how many times you ask, the answer will always be no.”

She stood up from her seat. “You practically do the treasurer’s work already!” She pressed on undeterred by his lack of response. “Kanehara p-”

“Don’t call me that.” He growled as he interrupted her sentence. His voice was just as hostile as his glare. “Never call me that.” He was able to tolerate his last name from his teachers or other authority figures who needed it for identification, but any time other than that, he did not appreciate “You know I hate when people call me that.” Without so much as a glance back, he left the room. Typically, people with a higher social standing very much enjoyed throwing their name around, however in Hiromitchi’s case it was the exact opposite. His last name was something he could honestly do without. He didn’t want the weight that came with the name.

As he walked through the now empty halls, Hiromitchi found himself gravitating towards the gym. _Well, it’s not like I have anything to do today._ He shrugged then peered in through the barred windows. This time, rather than arguing, the volleyball club members were practicing…whatever they were practicing. _Perhaps it is a warmup._ Hiromitchi wasn’t really sure, but in his case, it seemed like they were trying their best to dive and slide on the ground like penguins. Some of course being considerably better than others.

“Hey! Look it’s the inventory guy!” The small orange haired boy -whose name seemed to escape Hiromitchi- pointed at him.

Hiromitchi groaned internally, he was very not in the mood to play the role he started. Nevertheless, he gave the members of the club a small wave then trudged towards the entrance. He couldn’t just run off after being spotted, that would be unnecessarily suspicious, especially since he wasn’t doing anything incriminating. He opened the door and walked in. “Hi, sorry if it made you uncomfortable, I just wasn’t sure if I was allowed to watch inside the gym.”

Hiromitchi made eye contact with Yamaguchi and gave him a bright smile before he turned back to the rest of the team. “I was just curious about what you all did. I didn’t get to see much while I was doing inventory in the storeroom.” Hiromitchi neared Yamaguchi and gave him a gentle pat. “That and this guy said he would help teach me.”


	5. What It takes to be a Mentor

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> How to volleyball 101

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A clean desk is a sign of a cluttered desk drawer 
> 
> Enjoy!

“I-I mean w-well…” Yamaguchi’s face reddened like a strawberry. He wasn’t exactly thrilled that the entire club knew about his offer. There were many more suitable people to teach Hiromitchi, yet Yamaguchi wanted to be the one to do it. No one had really asked him for help before and nor was he a starting regular. “...there…are other members…too if you want…” His voice quieted even lower.

Daichi sighed and put his hands on his sides. “Yamaguchi.”

“Y-yes?!” Yamaguchi stood up straight and looked up upon being called.

“Do you want to help teach Hiromitchi?”

There was a pause. Yamaguchi looked to Hiromitchi who smiled in return. His mind was made up. Yamaguchi swallowed before he spoke with as much confidence as he could muster. “Yes.”

“Good answer.” Daichi nodded. He had no issues with other members teaching non-members. In fact, he might even encourage it. The only thing Daichi needed to know is if Yamaguchi had the determination to do it all the way to the end. It is important to have the tenacity to stick around to the very end as well as teach the right material. It was one of the things he had to learn as the boys’ volleyball team captain.

“It’s decided! We got one!” The frantic voice grew louder as the owner neared the gym. The doors were practically slammed open to reveal a very disheveled looking teacher. His black hair was a complete mess and his plain rimmed glasses sat slightly lopsided on his face. “A practice match!” His voice was clear and energetic which showed no signs of his prior wheezing. “It’s against one of the top four teams in the prefecture, Aoba Johsai high school.”

Hiromitchi recognized the name of the school. It was one of the potential schools he could have been sent to. While his Aunt preferred Shiratorizawa, his Uncle had a liking for Aoba Johsai. But of course, he chose Karasuno just to spite both his legal guardians. _I wasn’t aware Aoba Johsai had a volleyball team._ Hiromitchi wasn’t very into sports so perhaps he shouldn’t have been so surprised he didn’t know.

“A practice match with one of the top four!” Hinata’s eyes seemed to sparkle as he practically bounced in place. However, apart from the obvious enthusiasm of one person there were mixed reactions from the other members. Everything from fear, disdain and worry circulated on the member’s faces.

Hiromitchi leant down slightly to whisper to Yamaguchi. “Is he the coach?”

Yamaguchi shrugged; he had no idea who the person was either.

“So, you two are the controversial Hinata and Kageyama.” The unknown person walked into the gym and adjusted his clothes so he once more looked as well put together as he could while wearing a spring green tracksuit jacket. “I’m the volleyball club advisor starting this year. I’m Takeda Ittetsu.”

_Now that I think about it, the school did say something about a change in staff, didn’t they?_ Hiromitchi silently listened to Takeda’s introduction.

“I have no volleyball experience, so I can’t help with your technique, but for everything else, I’ll do my very best!” Takeda grinned, his expression similar to Hinata’s. “It’s nice to meet you!”

_Oh? How noble._ Hiromitchi had to restrain himself from outwardly grimacing. He was almost certain that Takeda had an ulterior motive. Hiromitchi was never one to trust people -adults especially- to do something out of the kindness of their hearts. Being an advisor to a club was hard. Being an advisor to a failed club was even harder. There was no way someone who knows nothing about volleyball would supervise a volleyball club without a catch. Hiromitchi snorted, _Except maybe idiots and fools._

Sugawara furrowed his eyebrows in worry and approached the teacher with Daichi in tow. “You didn’t get on your knees and beg again, did you?”

“No, no. I'm good at getting on my knees and begging…” Takeda grinned with pride. “…but I didn’t do that this time.”

Hiromitchi scratched out his initial assessment of the advisor _. Forget ulterior motives, this guy really is an idiot._ Hiromitchi felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He took it out and read the caller ID. “I need to take this; I’ll be right back.” Hiromitchi stepped out of the gym after informing Yamaguchi.

Hiromitchi answered the call without hesitation. Unlike the last call he participated in, for this one he was more than willing to talk to the person on the other end of the line. “Hello?”

“Hey, how’s it going?” A feminine voice chirped without restraint. “Doing well I hope.”

“Of course, I'm me after all.” Hiromitchi scoffed.

“I'm glad.” The voice softened.

“Pleasantries aside, are you alright over there, Kaya?” Hiromitchi furrowed his eyebrows in thought. Typically, he didn’t get calls from her. Perhaps a few text messages here and there but nothing else.

Kaya paused before asking her question. “Are you free on Saturday? U-um…for the whole day.” Her ears reddened from the question. She knew she shouldn’t be asking as much as she was, especially since this wasn’t the first time.

Hiromitchi sighed, whether it be relief or resignation he wasn’t sure. He could already imagine the puppy eyes on the girl. “Not particularly, but for you I’ll make it work.”

“Really?!” Her face brightened -not that he could see- “That’s great! I'm looking forward to it, Mitchi.”

“Yeah, yeah I gotta go now. See you on Saturday.” Hiromitchi hung up and slipped his phone back into his pocket. Hiromitchi knew that he would probably cave eventually so he might as well just agree without hesitation.

Hiromitchi turned on his heel and entered the gym once more. He was greeted with the sight of the team all sitting on the ground in a semi-circle around their captain. They all seemed to be focusing intently on the small whiteboard he was holding.

“Now, concerning the positions for the practice match. I think this is how we’ll do it.”

Hiromitchi snuck in quietly and sat himself between Yamaguchi and Tsukishima. The board had ten named magnets on it followed by an acronym.

“I want to use Kageyama and Hinata as a set, and Tsukishima is one of our few tall players. I want to see how you’ll fight against Seijoh.” Sawamura gestured to each magnet on the board.

Yamaguchi visibly wilted on himself, _I'm the only first year out of the loop._

Upon noticing Yamaguchi’s obvious distress Hiromitchi leaned closer “Could you explain to me what the positions mean?” He whispered quietly as not to interrupt the group conversation. Hiromitchi needed to give Yamaguchi a little confidence boost by reminding him that although he wasn’t picked as a first-year starter Yamaguchi still had his own merits. Hiromitchi decided earlier that flattery alone wouldn’t get him very far.

Yamaguchi brightened up somewhat as he began his explanation. “Kageyama and Sugawara’s position is called Setter. Imagine a control tower who tosses for spikes and organizes the offence.”

Hiromitchi nodded for him to continue.

“Next are the wing spikers, Tanaka and Sawamura. The position is mainly for all round, well balanced players. They attack the core of the opponents.” Yamaguchi gestured to each member he named them. “Tsukki and Hinata are both middle blockers. Their job is to defend against the opponent’s offense and score points, mainly through quick attacks. They also play as decoy to draw the opponent’s blockers away.” He thought for a moment. “There are other positions too but for this set up we don’t use any of them.”

“I see, everything is pretty structured.” Hiromitchi did appreciate the concise explanation that Yamaguchi provided. Of course, he would have preferred hearing about all the positions instead of waiting, nevertheless it was better than nothing.

“Listen Hinata, you’re the ultimate decoy!” Kageyama abruptly stood up and pointed at his orange haired companion.

Hinata also jumped up with renewed vigor. “The ultimate…decoy?” As if just noticing his role he fell back down on his hands and knees, defeated. “There’s something uninspiring about that.”

Hiromitchi could feel Hinata’s heart breaking from where he sat, it was pretty loud after all.

“We’ll let you score lots of quick attacks and direct the opponent’s blockers’ attention to you.” Kageyama shouted even louder at Hinata’s crestfallen state. “That’s when the other spikers will come into play.” He smirked, “Big guys like Tsukishima will fall like idiots to your movements. That’ll feel good wouldn’t it?” If that was Kageyama’s roundabout way of trying to cheer up Hinata it clearly worked.

“Hey. You’re not calling Tsukki an idiot, are you?” Yamaguchi pointed at the over enthusiastic pair and frowned.

“Shut up, Yamaguchi.” Tsukishima clicked his tongue.

“Sorry, Tsukki.” He rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly in apology.

Hiromitchi groaned internally at the pair’s exchange. It was something he had heard only a few times, but it had already started to irritate him. _Their little comedy routine is going to get old real fast_ , l _ooks like I've got my work cut out for me._


	6. Sweet Tooth

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Let's find some time together <3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My friend and I often laugh about how competitive we are. But I laugh more.
> 
> Happy Reading!

Hiromitchi sucked in a breath as he received the ball once more. He had only been receiving balls for thirty minutes and his arms burned. _It’s not even going that fast and it still hurts like a bitch._ Red welts bloomed all over his forearms and throbbed so much that he wanted to quit. It was absolute suffering.

Sawamura clapped his hands a couple times to get everyone’s attention. “Alright, practice is over. Let’s tidy up.”

 _Oh, thank god_. Hiromitchi rubbed his tingling forearms and hissed from the pain, he was now certain that all volleyball players were suckers for pain. No one could convince him otherwise. As he walked back to pick up his school bag, Hiromitchi heard a quiet snicker from none other than Tsukishima. There was a sardonic grin on his face which clearly said ‘Ha, weakling’

Hiromitchi tried to keep his facial expression under control to no avail. The ‘pleasant’ smile he returned clearly had a message of its own and it was not a pleasant one.

“Hiromitchi! Tsukki! Thanks for waiting.” Yamaguchi trotted over to the pair; red faced from rushing to get changed. He had changed a little later than the others because he went to get some water prior.

“Took you long enough.” Tsukishima deadpanned.

“No problem.” Hiromitchi’s words mingled with Tsukishima’s as they both greeted Yamaguchi in unison.

The three walked side by side with Yamaguchi in the middle. “Do you live in this direction too?” Yamaguchi tilted his head as he realized that Hiromitchi had yet to leave the pair.

“Yea, a bit farther down though.” This time Hiromitchi wasn’t lying. He didn’t really say how much farther down, but those were easily overlooked details. Out of all the students who attended Karasuno high school, Hiromitchi was arguably the one who lived the farthest. If he went by car, the trip would only take ten minutes, however if he planned to walk it would take double the amount of time.

A few minutes later the trio stopped at a cluster of houses. “This is my stop.” Yamaguchi gestured to two houses, “I live in this house and a few houses over is where Tsukki lives”

“I see, I'm still a little way straight. So, see you tomorrow!” Hiromitchi gave the pair one last wave with an affable smile on his face. “Good night! Sleep well!” After a few minutes of brisk walking Hiromitchi took out his phone.

**_Hiromitchi:_ ** _Hey :)_

**_Hiromitchi:_ ** _I forgot to ask_

**_Hiromitchi:_ ** _since I go this way already_

**_Hiromitchi:_ ** _do you mind if we walk to school together?_

**_Hiromitchi:_ ** _if it’s alright with you?_

Hiromitchi cringed at his own messages. It was a vast difference to how he would normally text, but of course he sucked it up for his goal, he’d do almost anything to achieve his goal. His phone pinged with Yamaguchi’s response.

**_Yamaguchi:_ ** _Sure :)_

Hiromitchi put his phone away pleased with the response he received. _Hopefully Yamaguchi won’t tell Tsukishima. I want to see the look on his face when he sees me._

Just before stopping back home Hiromitchi took a quick detour to the nearby café. It had been years since his first ever visit but from then on, he was hooked. It didn’t take long for him to become a regular, there was just something about the atmosphere and the drinks that seemed to make it leagues better than the other cafés in the area. Already knowing his order, he beelined right to the counter. “Hi, can I get a h-”

“Marshmallow hot chocolate to go, right?” The cashier was an elderly man with a kind smile on his face. He was wearing a brown apron over his white dress shirt and black slacks. Hiromitchi didn’t even plan to take a guess at his age, the man was so sprightly.

“That’s right.” Hiromitchi smiled in return and held out his card to swipe. On occasion, some of the employees would recognize him as ‘the hot chocolate guy’. During the two years he was a regular the marshmallow hot chocolate was something he always ordered.

“No, this one is on me.” The older man waved away the card and instead started to make the drink. While his back was turned Hiromitchi took out some cash that totaled to the price of two drinks and a meal then dropped it into the ‘tips jar’. He had more than enough money to spend.

Naturally, it didn’t take very long for Hiromitchi to receive his drink. It was warm in his hands and smelt absolutely amazing. The sweetness from the marshmallows and the rich, almost bitter dark chocolate spread over his tongue as he took a sip. It was just as good as always.

**_-_ ** **\----THIRTY MINUTES LATER-----**

By the time he reached home his cup was empty. Now that he was a few mere paces away he realized he neglected to throw away his rubbish. He looked at the empty to go cup and sighed. If possible, he would like to dispose of it without Saito noticing but that was impossible. Unfortunately for Hiromitchi, his ever-esteemed butler was very good at his job.

“Welcome back, Young Master.” Saito opened the door before Hiromitchi even thought about taking out his keys. “I trust you’ve been well.”

“As much as usual.” Instead of handing Saito his bag, Hiromitchi gave him the empty cup. _There’s no point in hiding it._ “I’ll be in the study.”

\-------

“I’ll notify you when dinner is ready.” Saito accepted the cup then watched as Hiromitchi entered the room then closed the door silently behind him. Saito sighed as he walked towards the kitchen and examined the item he was given. It was a vertically brown and off white ‘to go’ cup with the words ‘Marsh Hot Choc’ written in marker along the side. If his assumption was correct the cup was from the nearby café. “Marsh…mallow hot chocolate?” Saito remembered seeing something like that on the drink menu. It was something far too sweet for his tastes but for someone with a sweet tooth it was perfect.

In all his years as a butler he prided himself in his skill. He had been attending to Hiromitchi since the boy was twelve but not once did he bother to observe him as anything other than what his employers had told him. “Huh. Perhaps the Young Master prefers sweeter things.”

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----THE NEXT DAY-----**

“You are walking again, Young Master?” Saito held the car keys in his hand already prepared to drop Hiromitchi off at school.

Hiromitchi’s response was as business like as per usual. “Yes.” He was always very careful with not letting his butler -rather, his Aunt and Uncle’s butler- know too much about his personal and school life. Hiromitchi wasn’t quite sure if Saito reported his every move or if some things were overlooked. If they caught wind of anything, he was certain that his guardians would call the school or worse, transfer him out of Karasuno.

“I see, have a safe trip.”

Hiromitchi practically jogged to Yamaguchi’s house, it was rather chilly outside, and he needed to warm up. He pulled his umber colored cashmere scarf up to cover the bottom half of his mouth and readjusted his jacket so the zipper wouldn’t be caught in the fabric. As soon as Yamaguchi’s house was in sight, he saw a tall spectacled figure waiting outside the gate. “Ah. It’s T-S-U-K-K-I.”

Hiromitchi smiled as he emphasized every letter of Tsukishima’s nickname. “I didn’t expect to see you here.” He chirped, undeterred by the scowl that was on the blonde’s face.

“Aren’t you being a bit of a stalker?” Tsukishima didn’t miss a beat as he remained as calm as he could, Tsukishima had a bad feeling that morning and while he usually dismissed them this time he tried to prepare as best as he could.

“No, Yamaguchi and I are going to walk to school together.” Keeping his voice equally as pleasant he continued. “Perhaps, did he not tell you? His friend. Were you two not as close as I thought?” Hiromitchi sneered as they continued their ‘civil’ conversation. 

Before Tsukishima could reply Yamaguchi came out of his house with a huge grin on his face. “Tsukki, Hiromitchi! Good morning!” He hastily walked towards the pair. “You’re both really early.”

“Well, I was excited and couldn’t help myself.” Hiromitchi shrugged as he lied through his teeth.

Tsukishima almost outwardly shuddered from how overrated and cheesy the line was. Tsukishima was absolutely certain that Hiromitchi’s last statement utter rubbish. “So? It’s only by a few minutes. Don’t make a big deal out of it.” He rolled his eyes.

The three began to walk side by side. “Sorry Tsukki.” Yamaguchi rubbed the back of his head with a chuckle before he suddenly sneezed.

Hiromitchi sighed and shook his head. “You have to stay warm.” He took off his scarf and wrapped it around Yamaguchi’s neck. The lingering warmth was comforting and definitely welcomed in the cold weather.

“B-but…”

“No buts.” Hiromitchi gently pulled the scarf up to reach Yamaguchi’s nose. “It’s important to stay warm. Strawberries don’t do well in the cold.”

Yamaguchi felt heat rise to his cheeks once more as his face reddened. “You don’t have to lend me this, I'm not too cold.”

“I don’t want you to get sick.” Hiromitchi winked and made sure the scarf was on snugly. “If you do, I won’t be able to walk to school with you.”


	7. Baby, it’s cold outside

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's cold and there is a simp

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know, strawberries are not only red? They can also be white or yellow -some of them even taste like pineapples!
> 
> Enjoy!

“O-oh I see” Yamaguchi felt a warm feeling in his chest, and it wasn’t from the scarf keeping him warm. The feeling was fluffier and gave him butterflies in his stomach. “Is this really ok?” He furrowed his eyebrows in concern. “Won’t you get cold now too?”

“I’d rather you be warm. Remember what I said earlier?” Hiromitchi rearranged the umber scarf one last time before he pulled his hands back. “I take care of the things I like. And besides, the scarf really suits you.”

This time Yamaguchi blushed and smiled without restraint. “Thank you.” While he still had some mixed feelings about using Hiromitchi’s scarf, he was thankful for the extra warmth it provided. _I should do something to thank him later._ A plethora of ideas came to mind, but he moved them to the side, he didn’t want to overthink so early in the morning.

“No problem.” Hiromitchi began walking again and prompted Yamaguchi and Tsukishima to do the same, now that he didn’t have a scarf he wanted to get to school as soon as possible. “Let’s get going. We don’t want to be late.” Of course, Hiromitchi had made sure to stand between the other two boys. He wanted to be the one to monopolize Yamaguchi’s attention.

\--------

Tsukishima almost rolled his eyes for the second time during the span of twenty minutes. He was less than thrilled about the new development. His chest tightened and his stomach began to churn from Yamaguchi and Hiromitchi’s interactions. He chalked it up to mild discomfort and paid no mind to the other possibilities. Tsukishima resolved himself to find out why Hiromitchi gave him such a bad feeling, before he could make any claims, he first needed proof that it was him being overly cautious.

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----TEN MINUTES LATER-----**

Thankfully, it didn’t take very long to reach the school and take refuge out of the cold. Hiromitchi rubbed his hands together to warm them up as the trio made it inside the school building. Considering that it was still early, the campus was mostly empty. _If I remember correctly Usagi should be here right about now…_ Before Hiromitchi left to go upstairs and find his infamous best friend, an idea came to mind. “Hey Yamaguchi, wanna walk home together?”

“Su-” Yamaguchi didn’t have time to finish his response before Tsukishima spoke up for him.

“We have club practice before and after school.”

Hiromitchi raised an eyebrow and crossed his arms over his chest. “I don’t remember asking you. I was asking Yamaguchi.” He narrowed his eyes at Tsukishima before turning back to Yamaguchi with a pleasant smile on his face. “You can make your own decisions.” Hiromitchi waited for an answer which was unfortunately, not the one he wanted.

“Tsukki is right. We have morning and afternoon practice. I don’t want to keep you waiting for that long.” Yamaguchi pursed his lips apologetically. As much as he would like all three of them to walk home together, he couldn’t just ask Hiromitchi to wait after school with nothing to do. He didn’t want to inconvenience a friend like that.

“I’m alright with waiting.” Hiromitchi shrugged.

“But it might take long…”

Hiromitchi sighed. “Don’t worry about it. I have things I need to do after school anyway.” Hiromitchi continued without giving away his lie. “Just let me know when practice is over, and I’ll go to the gym. I only have to study.” Another lie. “I’ll wait for you.”

Yamaguchi broke out in a smile. “You mean it’s ok with you? Really!?” He did want to spend more time with Hiromitchi. Since Yamaguchi was a first year and Hiromitchi was a second year they didn’t get many chances to interact.

“Yes. Now go, you’ll be late to practice.”

Yamaguchi enthusiastically waved goodbye and chased after Tsukishima who had already started walking. “See you later!”

Hiromitchi clicked his tongue as they went their separate ways _. Yamaguchi would have easily said yes if it wasn’t for Tsukishima getting in the way. What a pain._ He actually had to put extra effort to convince Yamaguchi of all people.

\-----

After putting their bags and clothing away in the clubroom, Tsukishima and Yamaguchi made it to the school gym with a few minutes to spare. “Hiromitchi is really friendly.” Yamaguchi tilted his head slightly then looked up towards Tsukishima. “And nice too.”

Tsukishima, however, did not share the same opinion as his friend. “I don’t like him.” There was no point in hiding his obvious dislike for the boy, so he voiced his thoughts candidly. “It’s not a good idea to spend more time with him.”

Yamaguchi was taken aback by Tsukishima’s response. “But he isn’t a bad person.” He furrowed his eyebrows together. _Hiromitchi hasn’t done anything to hurt me or my friends._ “Tsukki, try be more open to making new friends.”

Tsukishima didn’t respond but instead, walked off and left Yamaguchi to himself. Hiromitchi was a second year and luckily there were current four second year students in the boys’ volleyball club, Tanaka, Ennoshita, Kinoshita and Narita. The captain had mentioned something about having a suspended member, but he didn’t know much else. 

It didn’t take very long to spot three of the second years talking amongst themselves, with no confidence lacking he called their names.

The three boys turned to the owner of the voice. Ennoshita was the first to respond. “Yes?” He was a fairly average looking guy but because of his downturned eyes he seemed to be perpetually sleepy.

Kinoshita -unlike Ennoshita- had short, spiky light brown hair and large narrowed eyes. He was more awake looking at least compared to Ennoshita.

The last to notice -or at least react- was Narita. In a similar Tanaka fashion, his hair was shaved and his build lean. If it wasn’t for Narita’s eye color and personality, Tsukishima would have guessed they were related.

Even standing amongst the second years, Tsukishima was the tallest in the group. In fact, it wouldn’t be a far-out statement to say he was the tallest in the club. “What do you know about Hiromitchi?” There was no need for the flowery small talk, so he cut straight to the point.

The three second years looked at each other and in turn shrugged or shook their heads. “Not much. We aren't around him enough to make any assumptions.” Ennoshita paused for a moment. “I've heard some rumors, but they are outrageous and far from positive.

“I second that.” Kinoshita nodded. “But you shouldn’t judge people based on rumors alone. Maybe ask people closer to his social circle or Hiromitchi himself. That would be the best option.”

Narita remembered seeing Hiromitchi once sitting and eating lunch with a girl. Though considering that the girls changed every so often there was probably no point in asking them. Narita crinkled his eyebrows and tapped his fingers trying to remember anything that could be of any help to his underclassman. “He does have one friend he always spends time with. I just don’t remember her name.”

“Whaddya four talkin about over there? Club practice is about to begin.” Tanaka appeared seemingly out of nowhere to interrupt the conversation. As always, his brash way of speaking was a little too energetic for Tsukishima’s tastes.

“We were trying to find out the identity of the girl who hangs out with Hiromitchi.”

“Hiromitchi, huh.” Tanaka hit his palm with his fist in an ‘aha moment’. “She has curves like this, and a walk like this, right?” He began to act out movements and with his hands try and show the shape of the girl’s body.

The other four boys listened intently completely disregarding the strangeness of it all.

“Sanaki Miyu. She is very attractive, but not as wonderful as our beloved Goddess Kiyoko!” He fell to his knees. “Oh, Kiyoko with her mid length hair that flows in the breeze like ink on parchment, her flawless pale skin and her icy gray eyes. Kiyoko is a goddess walking among us mere mortals.”

That was the moment when Tsukishima tuned out. He didn’t need to hear the spouting of a Kiyoko simp. Once or twice would have been fine. But anything more than that he found it excessive. “Thanks.” Now that he had his starting point he could work towards his goal. _Let’s see what kind of person you are Hiromitchi._ Tsukishima planned on visiting the second year’s hallway to try and scope out more people to ask.

\------

Thanks to his height and confidence, Tsukishima didn’t really look out of place amongst the second years. Not knowing where to look next he checked the time on his phone. _Ten minutes before class._

“Hello there, I don’t think I've seen you around before. Are you new?” A much shorter silver haired student seemed to appear behind him. “Maybe visiting a second-year friend?”


	8. Looking for Gossip

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tsukki tries to find out more about hiromitchi

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> How come "You're a peach" is a compliment but "You're bananas" is negative? Why are we allowing fruit discrimination to tear society apart?
> 
> Enjoy

Tsukishima jolted; he was startled by the girl’s sudden presence. “I’m looking for someone.” He couldn’t exactly say that he was asking around for rumors. If possible, he would have preferred to find this ‘Miyu’ without any help, but she was one student out of hundreds and there was no guarantee that she would even be at school at this time.

The silver haired girl nodded thoughtfully, as the student council president, it was her job to help the other students and Tsukishima was no exception. “Who?”

He debated the pros and cons in his head, if he told her who she was looking for, she might know Miyu’s whereabouts. “Miyu Sanaki”.

\----

“Mitchi!” Miyu gave him a lazy wave from her desk as he entered the classroom. Once she was certain she had his attention Miyu cleared her throat, “Oh my gosh! I haven’t seen you in forever bestie.” Her voice raised a pitch to hit levels of obnoxious. “Kyaa, I'm so excited to see you!”

Hiromitchi approached her desk. “Oh, my goodness, it’s like we didn’t see each other yesterday or something.” His reply was less than stellar and fell into sarcasm as he halfheartedly played along. “Wow, you look especially bitchy today.” Hiromitchi snarked.

“Aha, is that really something you should be telling a beautiful delicate maiden like myself?” Miyu feigned hurt. “I only say nice things about you, dearest. But to think…. you’d abandon me for a mistress!” She clutched her clothes over where her heart would be. “Even though I'm obviously the superior option.”

Hiromitchi tried to hold back laughter which only resulted in a quiet snort. “Is that so? And do enlighten me why that would be?”

\----

“I see.” The student council president’s smile became strained as she pursed her lips. _Why is it her always causing issues?_ “May I know why?”

Again, Tsukishima tried to keep the topic vague. The girl opposite him seemed like the type to pry “I need to ask her something.”

“I see. Since class is going to start soon, you’ll have to go back. However, I can let her know that you were looking for her. What was your name again?”

He debated on just leaving and visiting a different time, but it would be more efficient to leave a message. “Tsukishima Kei, and your name is?”

“Miyu Yukio. I'm the student council president. As to not accidentally confuse us please just call me Yukio. It’s a pleasure to meet you.” The pair shared a handshake before Yukio waved Tsukishima away. “You’d best be off.”

 _Miyu? Are they perhaps related? But Yukio hasn’t mentioned it so maybe not? It’s not uncommon to have similar last names._ Tsukishima nodded without asking anything more, from what he had heard from Tanaka, Miyu seemed to be more on the curvy side while Yukio would definitely be considered slender. Tsukishima waved away his thoughts, what did it matter to him if they were related or not? “Thank you.” This time he decided to be a tad bit more polite now that he knew that he was speaking with the student president. Just a smidge more than the rest. It was a bothersome job, so she deserved that much.

\-----

“…And those are all the reasons why I’m the best.” Miyu finished and looked mighty proud of herself, at one point during her ‘presentation’ she became heated enough to stand up. With her over exaggerated gestures and key points that were obviously blown out of proportion, it was a spectacle to say the least.

Hiromitchi had heard this spiel far too many times that he could probably recite them in his sleep. "You do realize that you say this every time I get into a relationship or pursue one" Hiromitchi leant against the window with a conceited look on his face. "Tryna tell me something here?"

Miyu rolled her eyes. "Hah, you wish." She flipped her hair back then sat herself down. "That aside, any progress on your wooing of err...yamasushi, was it?"

"Yamaguchi." Hiromitchi corrected. "And not much. His childhood friend keeps getting in the way. He is considerably more perceptive than Yamaguchi is.

"Do you need help?"

Hiromitchi raised an eyebrow "of course not."

Miyu shrugged. "Whatever you say. Then again, you are just messing with him anyway so what does it matter. Right?" She looked up at him both curious and concerned.

"Of course, Usagi. I’m never serious." he bent down and put his face barely away from hers, "Love is for the fools and the idiots."

Miyu swiftly pulled her head back and slammed her forehead into his. "People will misunderstand if you are that close."

Hiromitchi rubbed his head and hissed. "Was that really necessary?" Her headbutt stung more than he was willing to admit.

"Yes. Anyway, it’s class time. Hurry and sit" Miyu took out her notes and textbook. "We have a test today."

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----TWO CLASSES LATER-----**

Hiromitchi got up and stretched as soon as class was over, after every lecture he swore he felt more and more sleepy. He was more than glad that it was breaktime, at least that way he had a chance to stretch his legs and perhaps eat something. He rummaged through his bag looking for his bento, unfortunately his excitement was short lived when he couldn’t find his meal. _Ah crap, I knew I forgot something._ “Usagi, I'm going for a walk and to get food.” He grumbled. He left unceremoniously and headed to the cafeteria.

\--------

“I can get us some food, you want the usual, right Tsukki?” Yamaguchi perked up now that class was over. The stark differences between focused Yamaguchi and unfocused Yamaguchi were honestly quite something.

Tsukishima very much preferred the more endearing and upbeat side of his childhood friend, of course he’d never say anything but it’s the thought that counts. “We can go together.” he got up and without waiting was already half out the door. “Let’s go.”

Yamaguchi happily followed after him with no reservations whatsoever. “Yes, Tuskki” Just as he caught up Yamaguchi suddenly froze.

“Yamaguchi?” Tsukishima turned around once he sensed that his childhood friend was no longer walking beside him. “What’s wrong?”

“I think I forgot to close my bag.” His eyes widened and his mouth fell agape “I’ll be right back!”

\------

Hiromitchi wandered down the stairs absentmindedly, the cafeteria was always crowded with students; a majority of them being first years. His eyes pinpointed Tsukishima walking through the hallway alone. _Yamaguchi isn’t with him today?_ It was a rare occurrence that Hiromitchi didn’t think was possible. The pair were practically attached by the hip. _Well, more like Yamaguchi is chasing him around like a lost puppy. How pitiful._

As if on cue, Hiromitchi heard the sound of running get increasingly louder. The footsteps were heavy and rushed, there was no doubt in Hiromitchi’s mind that the sound came from Yamaguchi. Who else would be running so excitedly in Tsukishima’s direction? Hiromitchi smirked.

“Tsuk-” Yamaguchi felt two strong arms wrap around him and pull him to the side and around the corner. “Hey! Let go!”

“Shh shh it’s me. It’s Hiromitchi.” Hiromitchi put his finger over his lips in a ‘keep quiet’ gesture. He grinned and gave Yamaguchi a wink. “Sorry it was abrupt. I just wanted to ask you something.”

Yamaguchi relaxed with a sigh. He was not ready for a surprise friendnapping. “You could have asked me in the cafeteria without needing to pull me to the side.”

“Yeah, but your childhood friend, Tsukishima, he doesn’t seem to like me very much.” Hiromitchi took a step closer to Yamaguchi. “I wanted to talk to you...” He put his hand on the wall beside Yamaguchi, effectively trapping him between the wall and Hiromitchi’s body. “…alone.”

Yamaguchi blushed brightly as he felt Hiromitchi’s voice rumble in his ear. “U-um, Hiromitchi…” Yamaguchi feared his heart would break free of his chest.

“Hm?” Hiromitchi smirked, his lips just brushing the tips of Yamaguchi’s ears. _What a cute reaction._ Hiromitchi took great joy in watching Yamaguchi’s face turn an even deeper shade of red, now he really looked like a strawberry. It was the exact reaction he wanted from a Kabe-don.

“You’re u-um, you’re really close.” Yamaguchi was amazed he even managed to speak considering he was ridiculously flustered. It took everything he had to stay standing upright. He never thought that he would be the one on the bottom.

Hiromitchi simply chuckled lightly and let his voice tickle Yamaguchi’s ear before moving back just the slightest amount. “I know.” There was no bashfulness in his voice, but it was just the right pitch to be easy on the ears. It visibly sent shivers down Yamaguchi’s spine, “I was just wondering if you would like to go on a date with me?”

“A-a date?” Yamaguchi averted his eyes as his face turned pinker, if that was even possible. “Just you and me?”

“Of course.” Hiromitchi freed Yamaguchi then tilted his head slightly. “Maybe go shopping together?” Hiromitchi wasn’t really sure what to do on a date. He had never been on one with the intention of winning a person over. “We could get some food too. How’s Sunday sound, eleven in the morning?”

Yamaguchi twiddled his fingers as he contemplated his answer. Thankfully it didn’t take very long. “Sunday is good.” He managed to squeak his words out, as quiet as they were. It had been a while since he had spent time with anyone who wasn’t Tsukki. _I think it’d be fun…_

“That’s great!” Hiromitchi feigned a grin from ear to ear, making sure it looked perfect despite it being fake. “Keep this a secret between us. I’ll be looking forward to Sunday.”


	9. A Meal for One

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> good food is always welcomed

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I ate a clock yesterday, it was very time-consuming.
> 
> Enjoy!

“Did everyone get that?” Sawamura looked around at his teammates. Some first years were considerably more nervous than others. He tried to stay positive and hope for the best, perhaps they would get themselves together in time. “Questions about anything?” No one raised their hand. “Everyone understands the plan?” there were a few scattered nods that were very unconvincing.

Sawamura rubbed his temples already anticipating all the questions tomorrow. “Alright, let’s clean up and go home. It’s getting dark. I’ll see you all Saturday.”

\------

“Mitchi, is that you?” a burly student with black hair walked over to Hiromitchi’s still figure.

Hiromitchi looked up from his phone, the streetlight illuminated him like a spotlight as he waited a few paces away from the gym entrance. “It’s Hiromitchi to you.” His tone dripped with honey, contradicting the prideful smirk etched on his features. “Who are you again?”

“Don’t you remember me? Luke? We dated a few months ago.”

Hiromitchi pretended to feign ignorance. “Can’t say I remember.” There wasn’t much he remembered about this ‘Luke’, but the name seemed familiar. _I guess a rather unremarkable ex?_

“M-mitchi I thou-”

“Hiromitchi.” His eyes narrowed as he corrected himself a second time. “I don’t remember giving you permission to use that nickname. To be quite frank, I’d really rather not be talking to you right now. since I don’t know who you are.” Confrontations like these were always the most annoying to deal with, everything was in the past and they needed to get over it. “Perhaps, did you think you were special? That you were the one who could change me?” Hiromitchi pocketed his phone and began to walk to the gym doors. “I warned you, didn’t I? It’s game over when you fall in love with me.”

Hiromitchi left Luke standing alone under the streetlight.

\------

Now that the night had fully settled, the windows of the gym illuminated the area around it. Hiromitchi didn’t even need to peek through one of them to know that practice was over. The lack of shouting and balls slamming onto the ground were more than enough indication that the members were tidying up the gym. Hiromitchi rolled back his shoulders then wore a picture-perfect camera smile before he slid the door open and walked in. “Hey.”

“Hiromitchi!” Yamaguchi perked up as he looked towards the door. A warm feeling fuzzed in his chest. Hiromitchi had waited for him just as he said. While of course he didn’t truly doubt Hiromitchi, there was a tiny part of him which might have possibly doubted him for a second. “We’re almost done cleaning up then we can go” Yamaguchi chirped, reenergized by his visitor.

“Do you need any help?” Hiromitchi put down his school bag already anticipating the answer, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t hope otherwise. _Please say no. Please say no. Please say no…_ Hiromitchi’s expression didn’t falter despite his desperate internal pleading.

“We’ve pretty much finished.” Sugawara -if Hiromitchi remembered correctly-, seemed to magically appear beside him. “You seem to be good friends with Yamaguchi, are you a first year too?”

Hiromitchi shook his head. “Nah. We are just friends. I’m a second year.” He watched as Yamaguchi disappeared into the changing room. “Yamaguchi is a really good person.” It was one of the few things he could say with certainty. Yamaguchi was far too unassuming. Hiromitchi grumbled internally as he remembered Tsukishima. _Unlike the annoying blonde one._

“Hiromitchi!” Yamaguchi practically ran over to Hiromitchi, Tsukishima lazily strolling behind the green haired boy. He looked absolutely irritated. “Did you wait long?”

“You changed pretty fast and besides, I was talking with Sugawara about how cute you are.” Hiromitchi winked. “You look wonderful when you are all flustered.”

Yamaguchi could only make an assortment of unidentifiable sounds. He wasn't used to such direct compliments that border lined flirting. Or was it already flirting? Yamaguchi wasn’t sure, but either way, he was certain that Hiromitchi was trying his best to be a good friend. “U-um let’s we... home. Let’s go to…” His worlds came out scrambled which only elicited a sigh from Tsukishima and a chuckle from Hiromitchi. Yamaguchi would not be afraid to admit that his laughter chimed like a melody. It was beautiful. _I wonder if he practices his laugh._

“Yeah, home sounds good.” Hiromitchi tried his best to sound sincere but just the smallest amount of reluctance escaped his voice, it of course, was something that Tsukishima didn’t fail to notice.

The three boys began their walk home, it was a fair bit darker which only contributed to the cold air. “So, I heard that your practice match is tomorrow.” Hiromitchi made sure to position himself between the two boys as he spoke, he needed to gently pry the pair apart sooner rather than later.

As they walked, Yamaguchi chattered on about the upcoming match. Despite his enthusiasm it was clear as day that he was extremely nervous. While Hiromitchi himself could not relate to Yamaguchi’s struggles, he had seen a fair many people who could.

“Am I right to assume that I can’t watch the match? I’d like to see you play.”

“Y-you want to watch!?” Yamaguchi was taken aback by Hiromitchi’s words he wasn’t expecting someone to watch a match for him. After processing the question properly, he shook off his initial confusion. “Sorry, I don’t think you are allowed to watch. The match is being held in Aoba Johsai.” He hung his head with a downtrodden expression.

Hiromitchi gently ruffled Yamaguchi’s green locks, “Don’t worry about it. It’s not your fault.” A roguish grin appeared on his face as he gently moved Yamaguchi’s head up using his finger. I’ll watch one of your official matches next time.” Hiromitchi reassured Yamaguchi, completely ignoring Tsukishima’s scowl and presence _. I don’t need that kind of negativity._ He scoffed internally; _I won this round._

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----TEN MINUTES LATER-----**

“Thank you for the scarf, here, you can have it back now.” Yamaguchi held Hiromitchi’s scarf in his hands.

“No thanks, please keep it.” Hiromitchi replied instantly, not giving any leeway.

Yamaguchi puffed up one cheek in a pout. “I’ll wash it and return it to you next time I see you.” He refused to budge on his stance. They had been standing at his door for five minutes already, what’s another five more?

“Just keep it. It’s really ok.” Hiromitchi grit his teeth but smiled through their ridiculous argument. “You can do whatever you want with it.” Of course, being as stubborn as he was, Hiromitchi could have continued to refuse, except the fact that he made the mistake of looking into Yamaguchi’s eyes. He was hit with the full force of puppy eyes. Hiromitchi grumbled then held out his hand for the item. “Fine. Give it here.”

Yamaguchi happily complied with a lighthearted chuckle. “Great! See you both tomorrow!”

_We don’t have school tomorrow…_ Hiromitchi shook his head and huffed once Yamaguchi had disappeared inside his house. He looked towards Tsukishima. “You heard the guy.”

“Don’t even think about it.” Tsukishima’s voice was almost a growl as a scowl appeared on his face. It seemed that every time the pair were together there was absolutely no chance of them getting along. Hiromitchi clearly had ulterior motives and somehow managed to irritate him just by existing.

Hiromitchi didn’t bother to hide his coy smile. “I didn’t say anything.”

\--------

“Welcome home, Young Master.” Saito opened the door before Hiromitchi even had time to knock. “How was your day?” Hiromitchi was a fair bit later than he usually was, while previously he wouldn’t have questioned it, this time he tried to reach out. Saito had been taking care of the boy for years but he knew almost nothing about him.

“It was…good…?” Hiromitchi was slow to reply upon answering the unexpected question. Why was Saito trying to have a conversation? That’s not to say that talking wasn’t allowed, it was just that Hiromitchi wasn’t expecting anything other than the usual greeting. _Is he planning to make a report?_

Saito closed the door behind Hiromitchi then tried again. “Did you do anything interesting?”

“Nothing that could be considered as such.” His words were guarded as he tried to ascertain what Saito’s motives were.

“I see, dinner is already prepared.” The pair walked to the dining area. The chalk colored oak table was far too large for one person, if the six chairs were any indication. It was a grand room that looked just as drab as the others. The white and silver curtains matched the walls and the wood flooring that seemed to always be cold were part of the ‘wonderful’ quirks.

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----THIRTY MINUTES LATER-----**

Dinner was silent as always. Hiromitchi sat alone. Only the sound of cutlery and eating filled the air. While it was unpleasant it was something that he had become accustomed to. “The food was delightful as always. Thank you.” Just as he was about to stand up Saito stopped him.

“I’ve also prepared dessert.” Saito placed a slice of chocolate tart and a mug of peppermint hot chocolate in front of Hiromitchi.

Hiromitchi was stunned as he held a new fork in his hand, Saito never made anything sweet, both drinks and food alike. _Is this how I die? Poisoning? “_ Thanks…” There was some reluctance in his voice, but the tart was tempting enough that he tried a bite of it.

The crust was just the right amount of flaky as he began to chew. The rich chocolate filling was creamy but thanks to a slight pinch of salt it wasn’t overwhelmingly oppressive. If Hiromitchi had to rate the food, it would be a ten out of ten. “It’s good.” Hiromitchi definitely wanted to say more but he couldn’t just out himself like that. He took a sip of the peppermint hot chocolate and fought to hold back a smile. _It’s delicious…_


	10. How Scandalous

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hiromitchi is pulling out the big guns now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know that bullfrogs don't sleep?
> 
> Happy reading!

Saito breathed a satisfied sigh. He hadn’t seen Hiromitchi make an expression that suited his age since he met the boy. Although it was only a slight quiver, Saito had finally seen Hiromitchi’s lips curl up into a genuine smile. Unfortunately, just as quickly as his mood heightened it fell once more, _I've been by the young master’s side for years and didn’t know such a simple thing…_ His eyebrows furrowed together as he thought of the time gone and wasted. His thoughts only spiraled further down as he washed the dishes and cleared the too large table.

\-------

Hiromitchi flopped down on his bed face first, it was definitely one of the comfier pieces of furniture the house had. “That was really weird…” He voiced his thoughts out loud now that he was in the safety of his room. He always preferred to speak his thoughts when he needed to arrange them. “Is he planning something?” Hiromitchi grumbled and repositioned himself so he was lying on his back. “Maybe Saito is trying to bribe me.”

There was a knock on the door followed by Saito’s voice. “Young master, you left your scarf downstairs. May I enter to put it away?” He held the soft item in his hand; the scarf itself was fairly new and in pristine condition having only been used a few times.

“Throw it away, burn it, cut it up, I don’t really care as long as you don’t keep it.” Hiromitchi’s voice was hard but held a tinge of annoyance. He did kinda like that scarf before he let Yamaguchi use it.

Saito furrowed his eyebrows, the door blocking his expression. Every so often Hiromitchi would throw away certain items of clothing and gifts for no reason at all. Why? Saito wasn’t sure, but what he did know is that anything Hiromitchi received he didn’t keep. “As you wish, Young Master.”

Hiromitchi yawned as he looked around his room. It was plain with little to know personalization. The walls were an off-white silver color and had nothing pinned on them except a calendar. A multi-layered desk was pushed up against the wall adjacent to the bookshelf and right by the huge window. Hiromitchi always thought that having a window the size of his queen-sized bed was a little excessive, but he didn’t hate it. On his desk was a state-of-the-art laptop, neon green post-it notes, a pen and a glowing computer mouse. He sat up, took off his shirt and tossed it on the charcoal colored accent chair. _I’ll tidy it up later._ He wanted to change into something comfortable now that he had no other responsibilities he needed to fill. “You know what…” He put on his pajama bottoms then snuggled under his sheets. “Maybe I deserve to sleep early. I can pack up my stuff later.”

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----THE NEXT DAY-----**

Hiromitchi awoke to the sound of his alarm, it was far too early for him to be awake on a weekend, but he had made commitments that he couldn’t flake out on. After rolling out of bed in a very unflattering manner he decided to pack his backpack before getting ready to go out. “Hat, apron, hair ties, fake glasses…” He listed each item as he placed it in his bag. It was imperative that he didn’t forget anything.

It only took him thirty minutes to finish his morning routine after packing. Honestly speaking that was probably the fastest he has ever gotten ready on a weekend morning. He opened his doors and casually walked down the stairs ignoring the shocked reaction Saito had to his arrival. It was subtle and quickly rectified. “I won’t be needing breakfast. Just something on the go.” Hiromitchi’s voice was almost a grumble. “Don’t make lunch either.”

“Yes, Young Master” Saito soundlessly rummaged through the pantry before he found a chocolate chip granola bar and a carton of chocolate milk. “Take care. Call me if you need anything.” He handed Hiromitchi both items then waved him off.

Hiromitchi was perplexed as he received his ‘breakfast’. As far as he was aware, they definitely did not have either of the items on hand. _When did he go grocery shopping?_ “Thanks.” Without so much of a glance back Hiromitchi exited the house and began his walk to Yamaguchi.

\-------

Yamaguchi looked at himself in the mirror with a determined look on his face. “I can do this. We can do this. It’s just a practice match.” He could feel his nerves crawling up as he tried to give himself a pep talk. It was his first game after joining Karasuno and he didn’t want to let the team down. Yamaguchi was slightly disheartened that he was the only first year who was left out of the starting lineup, but he understood the reasoning behind it. He was worried that he would hinder more than help. He wasn’t talented like Kageyama, he didn’t possess the energy nor ability to jump like Hinata and he wasn’t as tall or smart as Tsukishima.

After failing to tame his hair a few times he shrugged on his volleyball team jacket and steeled himself. _It’s only a practice match, it’s only a practice match, it’s only a practice match…_ He was so lost in his thoughts that he didn’t notice Hiromitchi standing by the front door.

“Yamaguchi? Hey, Yamaguchi!” When Hiromitchi finally got the freckled boy’s attention he smiled and pushed his earlier sleepiness to the side. He only needed to pretend to be energetic for a little bit before he could go back to being miserably tired again.

Yamaguchi’s eyes widened upon seeing his friend. “H-Hiromitchi?! What are you doing here?” He was not prepared to see anyone by his door, well perhaps Tsukishima, but definitely not Hiromitchi. Hiromitchi was wearing a fitted white dress shirt and black skinny jeans. His hair was already tied up neatly in a relaxed over the shoulder ponytail and completed the outfit well. He didn’t have any other accessories other than a watch yet somehow Hiromitchi managed to make the outfit look elegant. They say that a good face is half the battle; Hiromitchi was definitely winning.

“Well you did say ‘see you tomorrow’, last night.” Hiromitchi smirked. “So here I am.” He felt rather smug after examining Yamaguchi’s reaction. He briefly scanned the surroundings and his mood was lifted even higher. _The blonde saltshaker isn’t here yet._

Yamaguchi’s ears turned red after remembering his words. He covered his face in embarrassment. Yamaguchi had completely forgotten that the next day was a weekend and made quite a blunder. “O-oh yeah.”

“If I recall correctly, you have a game today.” Hiromitchi moved the topic along not wanting to waste any time, he knew Tsukishima would be on his way. “I know it’s just a practice match, but I came to say good luck.” He gently pried Yamaguchi’s hands away from his face and held onto them. Hiromitchi softened his voice so only the pair could hear his words. “Do your best, ok? I'm rooting for you.” he suddenly had a spark of genius. “Or perhaps, do you want a good luck charm?”

Yamaguchi felt his ears redden as his hands were moved away with little to no resistance. “A good luck charm?” He furrowed his eyebrows and studied every part of Hiromitchi’s face searching for a clue of some sort.

“Yeah, here I can give it to you now.” Hiromitchi’s voice tickled Yamaguchi’s ear as he leaned in closer. Hiromitchi decided that needed to be a little more forward in his approach, just before he was able to place a soft kiss on Yamaguchi’s cheek, Hiromitchi was interrupted by an unsavory voice and an irritating scowl.

“Get your hands off him.” Tsukishima’s voice was almost a growl as he steeled his gaze towards the pair. “Yamaguchi doesn’t need your ‘good luck charm’ to do his best. He is perfectly capable.” His clothes were a little disheveled and it was clear he rushed over, if his quiet panting wasn’t already a big enough sign.

“T-Tsukki” Yamaguchi exclaimed as he broke out of his daze. If it was possible his face turned an even deeper shade of red. “Y-you’re here.” Yamaguchi was well aware of the very incriminating scene he was involved in but at the time he couldn’t help it. He was -he dare say- swept along by Hiromitchi’s mood.

Tsukishima walked closer then carefully took his childhood friend out of Hiromitchi’s grasp. “Let’s go. We don’t want to be late.” He didn’t take his eyes off Hiromitchi lest he do something more.

Hiromitchi smirked and blew a kiss instead. “Bye, bye. Good luck again, Yamaguchi!” His voice was light and almost singsong like as he continued. “You too Tsu-k-k-i.” He waved the two of them off, his smile not faltering. While he did fail the kiss, Hiromitchi found out that being a little more assertive in his pursuit was the best way to go about seducing his new plaything. _Next time for sure._


	11. The King and his Subjects

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The match begins!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There is a sport called "Squirrel Fishing" in which participants try to catch squirrels and lift them into the air by using a nut on a fishing pole.
> 
> Enjoy!

Hiromitchi entered an inconspicuous florist, located in the busier parts of the town. “Ah, can’t forget.” He mumbled quietly as he tied his hair up and tucked it under his cap. He pulled out his fake glasses and put them on before ventured deeper into the store.

“Welcome!” A much smaller girl turned to the sound of the bell chime attached to the door. Her face brightened up as she noticed who the guest was. “Ah, Hiro! I’m really glad you could make it. I’m really sorry we had to bother you on your day off” Her words dwindled to a quiet mumble.

“Don’t worry yourself over it, Kaya.” Hiromitchi pet the girl’s head gently. His voice and actions were a fair amount kinder than how he usually was. “Why don’t you call Grandma Chika and tell her I'm here to help now.”

She nodded then disappeared around the back, once she was out of sight but not out of earshot, Kaya took a deep breath then raised her voice to shout. “Grammy! Hiro is here!”

“Oh, good, good. We can go for a grocery, err… I mean a supply run today.” Grandma Chika walked down the stairs and around the corner rather energetically for her age. She wasn’t the kind of elderly woman you would look at and consider fragile, she was the elderly woman who could very well pull a good punch. Hiromitchi wasn’t sure of her exact age but she was most definitely over eighty. “I may be alive n’ kickin’ but I can only be in once place at a time.” she added

“Like most people, I'm sure.” He pushed his glasses up when they started to slip down his nose. “Do you want me to buy the items for you and Kaya?” Hiromitchi held his hand out expecting a list to be placed in it. Much to his surprise Grandma Chika made no such move.

Her white curls bobbed up and down as she picked up a reusable grocery bag and her sunhat. “Watch the store. We’ll be back soon.” After a quick wave she was out the door with Kaya in tow leaving Hiromitchi alone with the store.

\----

The Karasuno students got off the bus and glanced around at the school campus. “Make sure everyone stays together so no one gets lost. Got it?” Daichi announced to his club members before he began to lead the way to the entrance. He at least hoped the team would trail behind him, much to his dismay that was not the case.

“The ‘King of the court?” A voice murmured.

Tanaka’s ears perked up as he listened to more of the conversation from around the corner.

“Who? Oh! Yeah. Kageyama and I went to middle school together. He is an ego centric kind with no aptitude in teamwork.” A different voice added.

He scowled as he took a sharp turn. There was no way he would let anyone say such things about his juniors. Tanaka sauntered over with his hands in his pockets.

“Yeah! But I also heard that there is this other guy who walks around with a permanent scowl on his face. Apparently, he is a real idiot.” The same voice chuckled.

_Oh, now it’s personal._ Tanaka locked eyes with his two opponents. One of the boys had hair that made him look like a human turnip; it was a surprisingly good look on him. The other boy was similar to a cream puff with his swept to the side brown hair, not exactly Tanaka’s type of haircut but it was alright.

“If you look down on us like that…” Tanaka glared, his voice low. “We’ll chew you up and spit you out.” As if on cue the crow in the tree cawed and three more students appeared.

The tallest out of the now four students was the next to speak up. “You shouldn’t really intimidate the small things like that, Tanaka.” He looked towards the Aoba Johsai players, sizing them up before he gave them a sly grin. “Look, you’ve frightened the ‘Elites’. He added emphasis on the last word mocking them. “Don’t be too scared now. We don’t bite on good days.” He pushed his glasses up slightly, the breeze gently ruffling his blonde hair.

“Psh, w-we aren’t scared of you.” The turnip boy attempted to feign confidence. Before he could say more another person ran out from behind the corner.

“What are you guys doing? I looked away and you all disappeared!” Daichi dashed around the corner and gripped the shoulders of Tanaka and the tall blonde. _I told them to say with the group, and what do they do? Wander around away from the group._

\----

Hiromitchi tied his green apron over his clothes to keep them clean and snug. He began the opening routine as always. Water and prune the plants, check for orders, make flower arrangements then prepare for customers. It was simple and therapeutic, he had to admit that opening was the shift he preferred the most. His least favorite part of the shift was making the bouquets. The sappy love messages or condolences made him want to gag.

“Oh, my darling, happy birthday. Although we haven’t dated for very long, I already know I want to grow old and have a family with you. I love you to the moon and back, to infinity and beyond. Your kindness and smile alone have charmed me, but with your very essence you have healed my soul and saved me from my loneliness. So, I’d like to say one more time, Happy birthday, my love.” Hiromitchi wanted to gag as soon as he finished writing the message on an enclosure card. _I’m willing to bet half of this nonsense is exaggerated._ His internal grumbling continued as he glanced over to the other three orders. _And I have to do more..._

\-----

“The practice match between Karasuno High and Aoba Johsai will now begin!” Both teams took their positions. “Let’s have a good game.” The captains shook hands then returned to their respective teams. It had been a while since Karasuno participated in a training match -and not from lack of trying- Karasuno was more than determined to win.

For the team’s starting order, they had Hinata and Tsukishima as middle blockers. Kageyama as the mandatory setter and Ennoshita, Daichi and Tanaka as the three wing spikers. As Yamaguchi pushed both his envy and self-pity down, he did believe that currently their team had a pretty good line up. But then again, he had never seen Aoba Johsai play so he wasn’t sure what level opponent they were up against. Even as someone who wasn’t part of the starting order, Yamaguchi could feel his nervousness heighten, he could only imagine what his teammates were going through.

\-----

Thankfully it didn’t take very long before he finished and opened up the store. Hiromitchi heard the jingle of the door “Welcome!”. Immediately after his greeting he pulled down his cap just as a Shiratorizawa student walked into the store. Hiromitchi didn’t want to be recognized. Not only was it against the rules to have a part time job -unless you have permission, which Hiromitchi didn’t- it was also not a job that ‘suited’ his image.

It’s not that his reputation for being a playboy and an asshole bothered him too much, the problem was if it caused any trouble for the store there was a very real possibility that he could be fired. Hiromitchi couldn’t have that. Sure, he was getting a very generous allowance from his Aunt and Uncle; but he didn’t know when he would be cut off and have to make money of his own. Better to start saving earlier rather than later. His school didn’t know, his Aunt and Uncle didn’t know, Miyu didn’t know and it was the same for Saito; Hiromitchi would like to keep it that way.

Of course, if it meant using his job to seduce Yamaguchi, that would be an entirely different story. Hiromitchi had read enough sappy romance books to know that a protagonist with a surprising soft side is very well received.

\------

The match began with Aoba Johsai as the starting serve.

“Sawamura!” Kageyama called for Karasuno’s team captain to receive the ball. Sawamura got into position but before the ball made contact with his forearms Hinata intercepted it and sent the ball flying in the wrong direction. Everyone was stunned at the sudden intercept; the team knew that Hinata was nervous but to be nervous to that extent would have been comical if it were not interfering with the match.

"Ennoshita! Cover!" Tanaka was the first to react to the haphazard receive.

Ennoshita hastily sent the ball forward in a stable arc for Tanaka to spike. Unfortunately, despite Karasuno’s best efforts, the ball was caught in a three-man block. #7, #3 and #6 had ample time to prepare.

The turnip haired student wearing #6 smirked. “First point.”

"You idiot! That was obviously not your ball!" Kageyama yelled at Hinata, somehow his scowl deepening.

While Yamaguchi did sympathize with his small orange teammate, he also winced with every mistake that was made. In the span of a few minutes Hinata managed to bump into Tanaka, leap into Kageyama and send the ball off course more times than Yamaguchi thought possible in one match.

"Karasuno time out!"


	12. Flowers and Volleyball

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Practice match

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Refusing to go to the gym counts as resistance training, right?  
> \----
> 
> First post of the new year! 
> 
> Enjoy!

“You idiot! Enough already!” Kageyama gripped Hinata’s shirt and pulled him closer. “Quit it with the anxiety!”

“H-hold on, give me another chance!” Hinata floundered in his grasp trying to escape.

“Haaaahhh?!”

“Let’s just calm down, it happens. Ok?” Yamaguchi attempted to put a stop to the fight and somewhat succeeded. “We can steadily take back one point at a time.” He tried to pour as much enthusiasm in his words as he could without giving away that he was just as nervous as Hinata.

“Right!” Daichi nodded, thankful that at least someone was able to get Hinata and Kageyama to stop arguing -although temporarily. “The next server is…ah.”

The entire team looked at the scoreboard. It was twenty-four to thirteen, with Aoba Johsai at match point.

The team had one collective thought. _What awful timing for Hinata to serve..._

When Hinata fumbled the serve, no one was really surprised. When the ball went flying and hit the back of Kageyama’s head there were four different reactions. Surprise, amusement, anger and absolute terror.

“First set goes to Aoba Johsai.”

\-------

“Can I get you anything?” Hiromitchi popped up beside the student with a boyish grin on his face. “Perhaps I can interest you in our pre-designed bouquets?” While the store’s specialty was based on its wide variety of flowers and custom-made bouquets, they did get quite pricey. Of course, Hiromitchi was well aware that not everyone could afford such disposable luxuries so there was no way he would advertise it to a student.

“No thanks, I'm searching for a potted plant of sorts. Maybe two, preferably the kind that can be put in a club room for a while.” He ruffled his blonde hair and knitted his eyebrows together. _It’s way easier choosing which snack to buy than which flowers would match the club room._

Hiromitchi nodded thoughtfully, “I see” It was an odd request but from time to time the store would have customers that preferred plants of the potted kind. He wasn’t as well versed in the traits of various potted plants but at the very least he could give a few suggestions for the blonde.

\-------

The second set was well underway by the time Hinata had finally contained his nerves. He dashed towards the net. Yamaguchi’s eyes widened as he watched Kageyama’s toss fly directly towards Hinata who missed the spike. While it was incredible to watch the pair attack when they managed to do it correctly, it was painful whenever they failed.

The ball was passed to Aoba Johsai for the next serve. As soon as the ball was back in Kageyama’s possession he set it right back up more accurately than the last time. The right and center attackers began to move, while the left attacker remained open. _This time for sure…_

Faster than anyone could react, the ball suddenly slammed down on Seijoh’s side of the court. Yamaguchi heard sounds of astonishment from the opposing school’s coach. Yamaguchi was certain that through all the coach’s years teaching, playing and watching he had never seen something so fast.

The sound of volleyball shoes squeaking against the floor seemed to become more frequent as the players ran faster. Two Aoba Johsai students jumped up at the same time as Hinata in an attempt to stop the quick attack.

“I’ve been waiting for this!” Tanaka shouted from the other side of the court. He spiked the volleyball down as hard and fast as he could to beat a one-man block.

Aoba Johsai’s coach quickly stood up and made a ‘T’ shape with his hands. “Aoba Johsai time out.”

Yamaguchi, like the rest of the Karasuno team reveled in their continuous points. They were finally able to start their comeback. As their coached spoke it gradually became harder to hear him over the cheers and squeals. The Karasuno team heard the fangirls loud and clear. None of them were really that affected – except Tanaka. He clicked his tongue. He wasn’t bothered by the girls who were gushing over how cute this dude was but rather, he was bothered by the guy himself. How dare he be so popular. Putting his anger to good use, Tanaka scored point after point. There was no way he was losing to someone like him.

Eventually they reached twenty-one to twenty-four.

\---------

After Hiromitchi finished showing the customer around, he was curious on why the student was being so thoughtful in his choice. Hiromitchi would have just picked what he considered the prettiest combination then called it a day and moved on. “Is this for a special occasion? Birthday perhaps?”

The student nodded. “Yeah I want to give it as a gift to everyone. Kinda. This is our last year and I thought it’d be nice to give the other members something as a nice gesture.” He shrugged. “The three of us have been together for three years now.”

“How thoughtful of you.” Hiromitchi listened along pretending to both care and understand. He couldn’t say he had any attachments to people, even if Saito were to disappear, he wouldn’t be bothered in the slightest. Thinking about it in that particular light sounds pretty pitiful.

“Yeah, the flowers might not last, but the gesture counts.”

Hiromitchi tapped his chin thoughtfully then grinned. “Huh. You’re right.” As long as work finished on time, he might be able to catch Yamaguchi on the way home. _I can bring him some flowers._ Regardless if Karasuno wins or loses, he can still give Yamaguchi flowers. _But which ones?_ Hiromitchi looked around the store in silence before he found his pick. _I really hope he likes them…_ A whisper of a voice in his head toyed with the idea before it was instantly brushed aside. _I’m only playing around, nothing serious_. Hiromitchi assured -or at least attempted to. _Yamaguchi requires a lot more thought than usual that’s all…_

\--------

From the cheers and squeals the team learned that the pompous looking player’s name was Oikawa. He pointed at Tsukishima with a cockiness that could only be practiced. _This one is for you._ Oikawa took a few paces, tossed up the ball and leapt. His form was perfect as he slammed the ball down across the court. The ball hurtled into Tsukishima’s forearms then ricocheted off into the viewing stands.

Yamaguchi at the power the serve held. He had seen other players do jump serves before but to see the power and more importantly, control, Oikawa had over the ball was certainly intimidating. He clasped his hands together worried for his best friend -and the rest of his teammates of course. But Tsukishima came first.

“I thought so. While I was stretching, I noticed some things~” Oikawa waved to the Karasuno students to get their attention. He pointed to Hinata then to Tsukishima “You guys, aren’t very good at receiving, huh?” Oikawa chirped pleased. “I bet you are both first years. Right?”

Oikawa didn’t wait for a response. He didn’t need confirmation. He knew he was right. “Here’s another ball coming your way, ok?” Oikawa picked up the ball and once more followed the same sequence. A few paces forward, the ball tossed in the air, a flawless jump and an impossibly hard swing.

Tsukishima grit his teeth as the ball blew his arms back again. “Dammit…” He looked at the scoreboard. It was twenty-three to twenty-four, the match point still for Karasuno. He didn’t have any excuse for his inability to receive nor a witty remark to his opponent.

Hinata flailed as he stomped towards the net. “Oi! Grand King! Don’t ignore me! Serve to me too!”

“Can you not shout like that? You're being annoying.” Tsukishima clicked his tongue.

Hinata turned to face the team. “It’s just like Tanaka said, Volleyball is a team sport! Everyone on this side of the net are allies, no exceptions!”

Tsukishima was at a loss for words. He just got a lecture from Hinata of all people. He knew he had fallen far if it was Hinata giving the pep talk.

“Alright Tsukishima, go behind me towards the sideline, we can do this.” The Captain stood in the center in a ready position. “Bring it.” Sawamura took a deep breath, his plan was to expand the defensive area and try cover for the third years as much as he could. There was no way he would be able to protect the whole area alone, but he could damn well try.

“You can do it!” Yamaguchi offered words of encouragement to his team Captain and of course to Tsukishima. The game was just a practice match, but it felt way too intense for that. The whistle blew and Oikawa began his serve routine.

\--------

Hiromitchi sighed in relief as the last customer walked out. After helping that student, a wave of customers came in to replace him. While he did appreciate the fact that they had business in the first place, he was exhausted. Hiromitchi heard the quiet jingle of the bell for the umpteenth time that day, hoping that it wasn’t another wave of customers, Hiromitchi put on his customer service smile and readjusted his glasses. “Welcome!”


	13. Bundle of Flowers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Practice match is over

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes when I'm matching socks, I think, "What if these two socks don't even like each other?"
> 
> Happy reading!

“Hi, we’re back.” A small voice chirped.

_Oh, thank god. Kaya and Grandma Chika are back._ Hiromitchi moved around the counter and helped the pair carry their hefty looking bags. The bags were indeed quite the weight that Hiromitchi had to wonder how the small girl and her Grandmother were able to carry these all back to the store. “You sure bought a lot of stuff.” He furrowed his eyebrows. “How were you able to carry all these by yourselves?”

Grandma Chika simply laughed a hearty bellow. “I may be a Grandma but I'm a strong old lady.”

Kaya on the other hand did not laugh but frantically worried over her grandmother. It was immensely interesting for Hiromitchi to watch the pair. An energetic, sprightly grandmother and her -almost overly- cautious granddaughter. Usually it would have been the opposite way around but Hiromitchi didn’t mind this dynamic so much.

“Anyway, thank you for the help. I only need your assistance for one more thing then you’ll be free to spend the rest of your day.” Grandma Chika smiled kindly as she began to collect the flowers on an order form.

Hiromitchi’s lithe fingers moved over each flower as he began to design the new bouquet order. Judging by the types of flowers used he figured the order was for a bride, Calla lilies, Peonies and Muscari were typical wedding flowers. “I wish you all the best.” His words came out less than a murmur as he finished tying a blue silk ribbon around the flowers to keep them together.

\-----

“One touch!” Tanaka yelled as the ball grazed Hinata’s fingers and flew upwards.

No sooner than he landed Hinata pelted himself to the opposite side of the court and jumped as high as his legs could take him. In one fluid motion Kageyama felt the ball and tossed it to Hinata who sent it flying to the ground a little behind Oikawa.

The sound of a slam and end game whistle resounded through the silent gym as everyone took a moment to process what had happened.

“Twenty-three to twenty-five, the game goes to Karasuno high school.”

A cheer erupted from the crowd.

“What was that?!”

“That was awesome!”

“That was crazy fast”

Joining in the celebration Karasuno cheered just as loud. “You all did it!” Yamaguchi ran up to his fellow teammates, towels in hand.

Sawamura shook his head. “We did it. It was a group effort from those on the court as well as those on the sidelines.

Aoba Johsai’s Coach clapped a few times before he stood up. “Line up!”

\------

Hiromitchi wrapped a white ribbon around his mini bouquet of Nasturtiums to add the finishing touch. After a while of contemplation, he decided that it would be far nicer to send three flowers over a full bouquet, from his time working at the shop Hiromitchi would like to think that he had mastered the art of flower giving. Once he was finished with his gift, he removed his apron and took off his hat. His hair fell back now free of its bindings.

“I didn’t know you had long hair. You never take off your hat” Kaya popped into the back room from the behind the door frame.

“It’s easier to work with my hair out of my face” Hiromitchi took off his fake glasses and pocketed them. “I’ll be off.” He ruffled the smaller girl’s hair then walked out of the shop with one destination in mind.

Hiromitchi was feeling pretty confident in giving the flowers among other things, the only tiny doubt he had was if Yamaguchi would be home -preferably without Tsukishima. Though even if Tsukishima was present that wouldn’t be enough to deter Hiromitchi from enacting his plan.

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----TWENTY MINUTES LATER-----**

The distance from the store to Yamaguchi’s house wasn’t all too far, twenty minutes at a slow strolling pace was pretty nice. Hiromitchi got time to think in peace and admire the scenery. A head of green appeared in the corner of his vision, naturally it could only be one person. “Yamaguchi!” Hiromitchi called out to him and made an effort to jog over to the house.

Fortunately, instead of just walking into the house, Yamaguchi stopped and turned to the voice. “Hiromitchi?” He tilted his head questioningly as he waited. Hiromitchi wasn’t too far away that he was unrecognizable, but he wasn’t close enough to be one hundred percent sure. Once Hiromitchi was close enough Yamaguchi’s face lit up and waved to his friend. “Hi! I didn’t expect to see you.”

Hiromitchi hid the unruined flowers behind his back, he had taken extra care not to damage them. “Hey, I’m glad I caught you in time.” Hiromitchi reeled his breath back in before he spoke again, this time without panting. “Did you guys do well in the practice match?”

“Yeah! We won the match!” Yamaguchi’s eyes sparkled in excitement. Although he was feeling rather depressed at the time -when he couldn’t play- Yamaguchi was quick to bounce back thanks to the captain’s words.

“That’s great!” Hiromitchi was genuinely happy for him, winning was always a nice feeling. “Did you get to play?” No sooner than those words left Hiromitchi’s lips did the mood drop. _Oh, I guess not._ Hiromitchi may be good at reading the mood, but in this case, he didn’t need to be. It was blatantly obvious that he hit a sore spot.

“I, uh…didn’t really get to play.” Yamaguchi rubbed the back of his neck and looked down at the floor. “I ju-”

Before Yamaguchi could finish his sentence, Hiromitchi held the bundle of flowers in front of Yamaguchi’s face. “There is always next time.” He gave Yamaguchi a small smile so as not to be too imposing. “Besides, you are part of a team, even if you don’t play you still contribute to the win.” Hiromitchi pretended to think. “Here, have these flowers as my apology for souring your mood.”

Yamaguchi’s eyes widened in shock as the flowers were practically shoved in his face. “O-oh, there is no need.” Reluctantly after Hiromitchi’s firm insistence he took the bundle and held them close. Yamaguchi had to admit, the flowers were beautiful, “What kind of flowers are these?” He wasn’t able to recognize the bloom. The colorful red and orange flower head was a stark contrast to the vibrant green of the Lily Pad shaped leaves; while Yamaguchi wasn’t a huge flower viewing fan; he could definitely appreciate a pretty plant.

“Nasturtiums. They symbolize conquest, optimism and humor. A battle plant if you may.” Hiromitchi smirked roguishly. “As an added bonus the plant is edible -it’s quite nice with shrimp or veal. It can be a little spicy though.” Hiromitchi had to give himself a pat on the back for creativity. Pretty edible plants were much more useful than ones that would wither away in a vase. Those flowers were exclusively for special occasions.

“That’s really cool” Yamaguchi examined the flowers a little closer. It was hard to believe such a pretty flower was edible. Well, in theory everything is edible, but some things are only edible once. “Thank you.” He looked back up at Hiromitchi in earnest.

“No problem. I should probably start heading back. It’s getting chilly.” As if on cue, a frosty gust of wind breezed past the pair which caused them both to shiver. “I’ll see you tomorrow at eleven. Don’t be late~” Hiromitchi leant in and gave Yamaguchi a light peck on the cheek. “And of course, congratulations on the victory.”

Yamaguchi felt his face and ears heat up as he tried and failed to play it cool. “Y-Yes, thank you.” He managed to squeak out his words before retreating back into the house. _W-what was that?_ He was flustered to the point where even his thoughts were stuttering. Yamaguchi put a hand on his cheek where Hiromitchi left a kiss. He wasn’t expecting the flowers and he was definitely not expecting a kiss. It had been a rather eventful day.

\-------

Hiromitchi pulled out his phone once he was a fair distance away from Yamaguchi’s house. It wasn’t dark yet, but the daylight was already waning. There is no way he wanted to walk home in the dark without so much as a jacket. He called the only number he had on speed dial.

“Good evening, Young Master. How was your day?”

“I'm by Oxon Hill parkway. Take me home.” Hiromitchi skipped on the pleasantries, there was no need. While it was odd for Saito to ask how his day was, he couldn’t be bothered to look deeper into it. Hiromitchi had lived with Saito as his guardian for many years and they never held so much as a semblance of small talk.

“As you wish. I’ll be there shortly.”


	14. Orange Cider

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pre-date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> When I see ads on TV with smiling and happy women using a new sanitary product the only thing I want to buy are the meds they must be on.
> 
> Happy reading!

As promised Saito was as prompt as ever. “Thanks.” Hiromitchi seated himself in the back seat of the car once Saito opened the door for him. _How professional of him._ Hiromitchi rubbed his forearms to try warm the chill of the evening off his skin.

“Young Master, this will help.” Before he started driving Saito handed Hiromitchi a small thermos filled with what could only be assumed to be a hot drink.

Hiromitchi took the cup and nodded in thanks. _It’s probably coffee._ He lamented internally, rather than complain he decided to drink it anyway. In his shivering state, only a fool would deny something warm. As he took his first sip he prepared for the bitterness, but it never came. Instead, the taste of orange and maple apples spread on his tongue. “Apple Cider?”

“Non-alcoholic of course.” Saito responded without hesitation as he stopped at the last traffic light before their lodgings. He had decided to get creative with the variety of sweet drinks he could make. It wouldn’t do to just serve hot chocolate every day. Not only would that be bad for the Young Master’s health, it would also get boring very quickly.

“I see.” Hiromitchi furrowed his eyebrows together as he scrutinized the drink. It was certainly something that suited his tastes. Rather, for the past few days all of the meals and drinks seem to have changed to items that he would enjoy. Hiromitchi was very, very glad he didn’t have to down a mug of black coffee in the morning, but it was almost a little unsettling with the sudden difference of attitude Saito was showing. “Bring me to the plaza beside the train station tomorrow. I want to be there by ten thirty.”

“Of course.” Saito didn’t ask any questions. He would be lying if he said that he wasn’t curious, but it wasn’t his place to ask why Hiromitchi wanted to go there. Saito was told to keep a close eye on the child and make sure Hiromitchi didn’t make a scene. His employers never said anything about getting to know his charge. While originally, he thought nothing of it, he now realized that perhaps it wasn’t the best option to keep his distance.

Saito wasn’t so blind as to not notice the strained relationship his employers had with their nephew. As a simple butler he never intervened with how the family dynamics played out. He was merely hired help. He shook his head at his own foolishness, _Hiromitchi must feel like he is living in a house of enemies._

Saito parked the car in the garage and opened the door to let Hiromitchi out. “Do you have any requests for dinner?” Saito didn’t miss the shocked look Hiromitchi tried to hide, and quite honestly Saito didn’t blame the boy. He would never ask such a question before.

Hiromitchi’s reply was hesitant but concise. “Something light. I’ll be going to sleep right after.” 

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----THE NEXT MORNING-----**

Hiromitchi looked at himself in the mirror then shook his head. “No. Not this one either.” It was absolutely imperative that he dressed himself up to look as irresistible as possible. The problem was, he wasn’t quite sure what to go for. _Casual? Perhaps classy? But I don’t want to be overdressed. Cute is obviously out of the running. Cool bad boy maybe? Preppy? Nah._ Hiromitchi groaned frustrated. He had an overly large selection of clothes to choose from, both branded and non-branded. They say clothes make the man but perhaps he had amassed too many. Though he supposed that being used as a walking talking mannequin for his ‘family’ might have something to do with his ever-growing closet.

\--------

Yamaguchi’s focus was scattered and filled with nervous anticipation; he was excited, giddy even. He stared at the outfits he laid out carefully on his bed. Yamaguchi had one hour to choose an outfit and he was having a lot more trouble than he thought he would. He wanted to look his best since it was technically his first ever date. _Hanging out with Tsukki doesn’t really count since we are always together_. He sighed. _Does this look nice?_ More time passed as Yamaguchi fretted almost endlessly over what to wear. He tried on more than five different combinations and still had no idea what he planned to do.

\------

After thirty minutes Hiromitchi finally decided to what clothes to wear. He was wearing a plain maroon V-neck t-shirt and white skinny jeans. On his right wrist he decided to wear his usual rose gold Blancpain watch and on his left, he chose two string bracelets. Finally, to complete the look he tied his hair in a simple ponytail. “Looking good.” He brushed off invisible dust from his shoulders as he admired himself in the mirror.

Hiromitchi walked down the stairs with renewed vigor and confidence. Now that he had chosen his ‘battle armor’ Hiromitchi felt fully prepared for the date. He slipped on his orange converses and notified his butler. “Saito, I’m ready to go.”

“Of course, Young Master”

**_-_ ** **\----ONE CAR RIDE LATER-----**

“I’ll call you when I’m finished.” Hiromitchi gracefully exited the car; not sparing a second glance before leaving to the designated meeting spot. The colorful paving slabs were aligned to create a mosaic like pattern that could only be discerned from a bird’s eye view. Hiromitchi looked around for a conspicuous place to stand in hopes that it would be easier for Yamaguchi to find him.

\------

Yamaguchi looked around the plaza in mild panic. It was a bustling Sunday morning which would not have been an issue if it weren’t for the fact that he had negative two minutes to look for his date.

“Yamaguchi!”

Yamaguchi twirled around in the direction of where his name was called. Thankfully his eyes landed on Hiromitchi. Just the person he was looking for. “Hey! Sorry I’m a little late.” Yamaguchi trotted over to where Hiromitchi was standing.

“It’s no issue at all, I just arrived myself.” Hiromitchi smiled pleasantly and pretended like he hadn’t waited for over twenty minutes. “You look cuter than usual. Did you put some extra effort in for me?” A roguish grin appeared on his features as he inspected Yamaguchi’s outfit. He was wearing an oversized navy blue and juniper sweater that matched his hair. The ankle length jeans showed of his orange tennis shoes not unlike the orange of Hiromitchi’s own shoes.

“W-well… maybe.” Yamaguchi felt heat run to his face as he looked away. “J-just a bit.” It was safe to say he felt very proud of the compliment he received but did not expect Hiromitchi’s intuition to be spot on. Yamaguchi cleared his throat. “You look very good too.” His words were wobbly, but he tried his best.

Hiromitchi’s eyes widened slightly, not expecting such an innocent reaction. _T-that’s really cute._ He shooed the traitorous thought away. _No, I’m seducing him not the other way around. I’m just playing with a new toy._ “Of course. I made sure to look extra irresistible.” Hiromitchi chuckled. “Anyway. Are you ready to go?”

“Where are we going?”

“Shopping. We are goi-” Before Hiromitchi finished his sentence a phone ringtone interrupted him.

Yamaguchi apologized and took out his phone to see who was calling him. “It’s Tsukki.” Without any hesitation he went to answer the call.

“Nope.” Hiromitchi pouted then moved Yamaguchi’s finger away from the ‘answer’ button. “Today. It’s just me and you.” Using his own finger Hiromitchi declined the call and put Yamaguchi’s phone on ‘do not disturb’. This was a date between himself and Yamaguchi, he would not let a troublesome saltshaker interrupt them.

\--------

Tsukishima looked at his phone bewildered. Yamaguchi was never one to miss a call, especially not ones from him. _Maybe he is just sleeping._ Tsukishima looked at the clock then furrowed his eyebrows. _Or his phone died?_ A rather unpleasant feeling seeped into his chest, should he visit Yamaguchi in person? Tsukishima shook his head with a grumble. “No, that’d be weird. He’ll probably call back.” It was an odd feeling not to hear from Yamaguchi, not even a good morning text graced his message inbox.

Yamaguchi never missed his morning text routine. The squeezing in Tsukishima’s chest felt tighter as he continued looking at his phone, it was an unsightly combination of emotions that he couldn’t quite pinpoint. Was it disappointment, resentment? Perhaps even loneliness. Refusing to delve deeper into the feeling, Tsukishima stood up and stretched. He brushed away his unneeded thoughts. _A text message isn’t that big a deal._


	15. Sunday Shopping

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Date part 1

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A password looks at itself in the mirror, "Don't listen to Google, you are a strong, confident password who don't need no special symbols."
> 
> Enjoy!

The train ride to their destination was far from unpleasant, seated opposite each other, the pair chattered on about everything from schoolwork, to hobbies, to favorite movies. Hiromitchi’s original plan was to take Yamaguchi with him to Tokyo to do some shopping over there, however the meet up time was far too late. There was thankfully another place they could both go; a few stations away there was a newly built mall.

The train slowed down and eventually came to a full stop. “Looks like this is our stop.” Hiromitchi held out his hand for Yamaguchi to take as the pair dismounted.

Yamaguchi gratefully took his hand and the pair began to walk out of the station. “I've never been to this station before.” He was bewildered at the difference in scenery. The buildings seemed to be a little taller and a little grander than what he was used to.

“Don’t worry.” Hiromitchi grinned and waved his free hand. “I haven’t been here either if it makes you feel better.” He winked at Yamaguchi’s panicked expression. _What a face._

“W-wait, what?!” Yamaguchi furrowed his eyebrows in a state of worry. “What if we get lost!? What if we don’t make it to the mall at all.” He stopped walking and brought Hiromitchi to a stop with him. “That doesn’t make me feel better at all.”

Hiromitchi started to walk again and tried to hold back a laugh as Yamaguchi held onto his arm tighter.

“Don’t laugh” Yamaguchi pouted. Understandably, he was a nervous wreck at this point. Hiromitchi who had never been to this place was leading them around without so much as a map on his phone screen.

“I-I'm not laughing” Hiromitchi looked away to hide his growing smirk. Yamaguchi’s reactions were just so cute that he couldn’t help but tease him.

Yamaguchi puffed up his cheek. “I can see that you’re about to.”

Hiromitchi couldn’t help but let out a few quiet snickers. “I have no idea what you are talking about.” He feigned innocence then swallowed down the rest of his laughter. Hiromitchi glanced around the street “I told you not to worry, see?” He pointed at the street sign. “We are almost there.” While it was true that Hiromitchi had never visited the location in person before, he did check out the area via google maps prior to the trip.

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----FIFTEEN MINUTES LATER-----**

“Woah…” Yamaguchi’s eyes widened as they entered the building.

The shopping mall had the architecture that schools and hospitals could only dream of. The walkway flowed as it led the river of people though its curved interior, the design of the building was more rounded and elegant, with not a sharp angle to be seen.

Hiromitchi looked at the polished faux marble floor then back up at the stores neatly placed in their own space. There was no need for extra color or decoration as the shops did a plenty good job of it themselves. Unfortunately, he couldn’t fabricate his amazement. It wasn’t anything he hadn’t seen before. “It’s not bad.” His voice was barely above the soothing background music that lulled the chatter of the shoppers. Hiromitchi wasn’t expecting it to look as grand as it did, with two floors and a high ceiling it was almost unnecessarily big. _I would expect something like this in Tokyo but not here._

Bubbles of excitement spread through Yamaguchi as the pair walked farther into the mall. He had never seen a mall quite as large as the one he was in now. Sure, he had been to malls and outlets before with Tsukki, but this was a first for him. “Where are we going?”

“First order of business is to get you a scarf.” Hiromitchi grinned proudly. “Then I’ll spoil you rotten.” From what Hiromitchi had noticed and learned from the people around him, is that you can in fact, buy affection. So naturally the first step would be to shower Yamaguchi in gifts.

Yamaguchi was taken aback then furrowed his eyebrows. “No, no. You don’t have to do that. In fact, don’t do that.” While the offer was tempting, Yamaguchi didn’t want to take advantage of Hiromitchi’s kindness.

“Too bad. I’m paying for this date because I want to. It’s my gift for dragging you along like this.” Hiromitchi shrugged and ignored Yamaguchi’s refusals. “Come on, let’s get to it shall we?” He chirped happily.

The pair walked a few steps before Hiromitchi steered Yamaguchi over to a popular clothes store. “Ah, I like this brand. They make some nice things.” Hiromitchi confidently strolled to one of the clerks and asked if they sold any scarves. Luckily for the pair, the store not only had scarves but matching gloves, coats and hats too. Hiromitchi looked through the winter ready apparel and tried to envision Yamaguchi in each outfit.

\--------

Yamaguchi flitted around the store glancing at the different items, he had seen other branches of the store before but never had he actually entered one. It was a little too intimidating for him. Everything in the store was placed with meaning, from the hue of the flowers to the oriental patterns on the wall. The garments made with a fabric undoubtedly finer than the average student could afford were beautiful even on the hangers.

“Yamaguchi!” Hiromitchi briskly walked over to his friend with a bundle of different clothes in his arms. “Could you try all of these on? I want to see what they look like on you.” He gave his best pleading eyes upon seeing Yamaguchi’s hesitation. Hiromitchi had put a lot of thought into the chosen clothes so he refused to give up before Yamaguchi tried them all on. 

Not even a few seconds later Yamaguchi found himself with the clothes in his arms and being gently coaxed into a changing room. There were a few things that surprised him, though mainly two stood out. One, Hiromitchi guessed his clothing size pretty well and two, all the clothes were very well coordinated. _I never took Hiromitchi for the fashionable type._ Yamaguchi glanced at the collection of clothes. There seemed to be two outfits, one for summer and one for winter - which even included a scarf, a fuzzy winter hat and a pair of mitten styled gloves. He tried on the winter outfit first then scrutinized himself in the mirror. Yamaguchi found that he quite liked it.

\--------

Hiromitchi perked up upon hearing the changing room curtain pushed to the side.

“What do you think?” Yamaguchi’s voice was a little shy which only emphasized his charm.

_Fuck._ Hiromitchi was almost stunned to silence. “You look great.” He unabashedly let his eyes roam all around Yamaguchi’s body staring at all the places he could. _It really suits him._ Hiromitchi realized what he was thinking then moved the thought away replacing it with something vainer. _I’m great at choosing clothes. It hugs all the right places and fluff in all the others._ He winked, “I’d tap that.”

Yamaguchi’s face turned pink as he meekly gave Hiromitchi a twirl which caused the flaxen colored scarf -not unlike Hiromitchi’s hair color- to loosen. He was wearing maroon pants that were tucked into black winter boots and an olive-green waterproof coat with a cream fluff rimmed hood. The long sleeves of the coat reached up to the middle of Yamaguchi’s mitten covered hands and the bottom hem reached a little lower than the band of his pants. But what really brought the outfit together was the green and white patterned knit ski hat complete with a cute pompom on top. Simply put, Yamaguchi was ready for winter and looked absolutely adorable while he was at it.

Hiromitchi leaned back on the chair proudly. “Let’s buy it. The summer outfit too.”

“W-wait, you haven’t even seen what it looks like on me!” Yamaguchi protested. “Plus, this is all probably really expensive!” At this point Yamaguchi was making an excuse so Hiromitchi would not buy everything that he had chosen. While Yamaguchi would appreciate it, he could never accept something so grand as that, especially since they were friends. They weren’t even dating. But even then, it’s a huge investment.

Hiromitchi pouted, crestfallen. _Did it not work? Was I wrong? But doesn’t buying things always work? From what I've seen that’s how you show affection._ Hiromitchi furrowed his eyebrows as he tried to wrap his head around Yamaguchi’s reaction. He hadn’t ever encountered someone who didn’t want to accept everything they could. _Maybe he wants other things? That’s probably it._ Once Hiromitchi finished reasoning for an answer, he went for a compromise. “Fine, I won’t buy the whole outfit. Only the scarf.”

Hiromitchi stood up and leaned in close to ever so gently unwrap the scarf from Yamaguchi’s neck. “Go back and change and I’ll pay.” Hiromitchi went to the counter to pay once Yamaguchi had gone back to the changing room. “Just this.” He handed the scarf and his credit card over without bothering to even look at the price tag. The price of a branded scarf wouldn’t even make a dent in his finances. Hiromitchi had deep pockets so of course he would use them.

\---------

Yamaguchi wasn’t close enough to see the exact price, but the number of digits that were on the screen did not fall under the category of a ‘normal’ scarf. _Isn't that really overpriced?_ Yamaguchi, however, did not make any further objections, especially since he finally managed to come to a compromise. He glanced out the door while waiting for Hiromitchi to return, it was only then Yamaguchi realized what store he was in. _A luxury brand store!?_ Yamaguchi’s eyes switched focus between Hiromitchi’s back and the brand logo. What kind of student could afford anything in the store? _If a scarf cost this much, then what if it was the full outfit?_


	16. Unread Messages

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> End of the date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "I ran half a marathon" sounds so much better than "I quit halfway through a marathon"
> 
> Enjoy!

The pair had walked around the mall in a rather aimless manner. They entered store after store either trying on clothes or laughing at the absurdity of the items. Each place seemed to have a different music station that varied from country to classical and even to pop. Some a little less entertaining than others.

Just before Hiromitchi and Yamaguchi exited yet another store Hiromitchi did a double take at an item. It was a small wooden bookmark with a pressed Zinnia flower as the main decoration piece. He flipped it over and was pleasantly surprised to see a simple message engraved on the back. “Until we meet again.” Hiromitchi murmured the words out loud to himself as he thought about the meaning behind them.

Yamaguchi immediately paused when he noticed Hiromitchi suddenly stop at a rack of themed bookmarks. He looked over Hiromitchi’s shoulder and saw the engravement before he noticed the decoration on the front side. It was an exuberant red and yellow flower with thin petals. He wasn’t one to identify different types of flowers but judging by the face Hiromitchi made, Yamaguchi was right to assume that his date knew. “What kind of flower is that?”

Hiromitchi jolted a little more than he would have liked from Yamaguchi’s sudden words and closeness. “Oh, this is the Zinnia flower.” Hiromitchi played with the dangling green string on top of the bookmark as he continued to share his knowledge. “It means remembrance, missing a friend and endurance. It’s one of the easiest flowers to grow.” He smiled. “This is a flower that refuses to yield to drought, frost and storms.”

“You know a lot about flowers, don’t you? Do you like them?”

“Something like that.” Hiromitchi began to walk to the counter to pay for the item. Originally, he had no intention to get anything of the sort but when he saw it, he thought it was perfect for his purpose.

Yamaguchi nodded, he found it rather endearing that Hiromitchi of all people had an interest in flowers. He didn’t really seem like the flower loving type. _You can’t really judge people based on appearances._ “So, um. Is this for yourself or…” Yamaguchi twiddled with his fingers anxiously. “…maybe for your girlfriend…or boyfriend?” He added quickly. 

Hiromitchi gave Yamaguchi a coy smirk after receiving his newly bought item. “Oho? I wonder, why would a cute thing like you want to know?”

Yamaguchi’s face turned even brighter. “You don’t have to tell me.” He pouted then turned away.

“It’s for my brother.” Hiromitchi chuckled.

Yamaguchi turned around to face Hiromitchi. “Brother?”

“Well, cousin really.” He furrowed his eyebrows. “I haven’t seen him in a while.” Before Yamaguchi could say anymore Hiromitchi continued. “But, that aside. I’m very single right now and I’m not partial to any particular gender, just thought I’d let you know.”

\---------

Tsukishima looked at his phone then at the clock. Still there was nothing from Yamaguchi. No call, no text, not even an email. He shook his head then picked up his phone. _Maybe I’ll send a text._

**_Tsukishima:_ ** _Good Afternoon_

_No, that sounds stupid._ He deleted the message and tried again.

**_Tsukishima:_ ** _What’s up?_

He groaned and deleted that message too.

**_Tsukishima:_ ** _Hi_

Once he had found a rather normal sounding text message he pressed send. It was an odd sensation having to reach out for Yamaguchi instead of the other way around. Yamaguchi was always by his side. “At least until recently.” He scoffed.

Hiromitchi really rubbed Tsukishima the wrong way. Everything about him, from his clothes, his face, his personality, his breathing, rather, Hiromitchi’s entire being was a nuisance. Tsukishima’s frustration intensified the longer he thought of the ash blond. “Now that I think about it, I have to follow up with the student council president about my request.” Tsukishima put his phone down and turned up the volume of his headphones.

A few minutes passed and he couldn’t resist the urge to check for notifications on his phone. Nothing. Tsukishima grumbled again as he stared at the message marked as ‘unseen’. “Argh! Fuck.” He wasn’t sure what else there was to say to express what he was feeling. “Maybe I’ll just go visit his house.” Tsukishima stood up and brought a notebook with him. _Of course, I'm only going so I can return Yamaguchi’s notes to him. No other reason. I’m just returning his notes._

\--------

“…And then Tsukki di-”

Hiromitchi stopped Yamaguchi mid spiel by feeding him a soggy french-fry. “You’re making me jealous with how much you talk about him.” He pouted like a petulant child. Considering Yamaguchi had spent the last ten minutes talking about the saltshaker, Hiromitchi felt like he was doing a rather poor job at his date. He had never been on a date personally, but Hiromitchi had heard and watched enough couples to get a rough guess at what made people tick. For a split second he almost regretted not accepting prior date offers.

“Sorry, Hiromitchi…” Yamaguchi deflated slightly as he continued chewing at the fry. He wasn’t really sure what else to say. What else did he have to say?

Hiromitchi raised an eyebrow at Yamaguchi’s reaction and instant mood fall. “Well, I might accept the apology if you tell me more about yourself.” He put the back of his hand on his forehead in the overly dramatic ‘le gasp’ position. “To think, I know more about Tsukishima than my own date. How could this be?” Hiromitchi opened an eye to check for Yamaguchi’s reaction. If possible, he would have liked to think he saved the conversation but when it came to Yamauchi, Hiromitchi was still slightly unsure. Not that he would ever admit if of course.

“Well…” Yamaguchi squirmed in place trying to think of something, anything. He wasn’t used to people asking about him. It was always Tsukki. Not that Yamaguchi minded too much, Tsukishima was his idol after all. “…um, I like the color green?”

Hiromitchi nodded along. “Ok, that’s a start.”

“My birthday is the tenth of November and my favorite food is soggy fries.”

Hiromitchi smiled knowingly, he was very well aware of the last two things. Believe it or not, it was rather easy to find out about people. At least for him it was. “Nice, nice.” He held another fry up to Yamaguchi’s mouth, effectively feeding the teen. Luckily it seemed that Yamaguchi accepted it without a second thought, which was either good or bad depending on the perspective. Hiromitchi waited till Yamaguchi had relaxed somewhat. “So, are you and Tsukishima a thing?”

“E-Excuse me?! W-We aren't d-dating or a-anything.” Yamaguchi’s face turned a brighter shade of red by the second. “Tsukki i-is my best friend!” He vehemently denied Hiromitchi’s question. As far as Yamaguchi was aware, Tsukishima had no romantic feelings for him. Though, he wasn’t sure if he liked it that way or not.

At that Hiromitchi beamed. _Good, the fact that Yamaguchi hasn’t noticed his own feelings gives me a better chance at succeeding. Let’s stir the pot a little more._ Hiromitchi kept his less than savory remarks to himself. “I see. That means I have a chance then, right?”

For the umpteenth time for the day Yamaguchi was at a loss. His face was flustered and his mind in a scramble. “W-what?”

“I'm saying. You are seriously cute, and I want to win your heart.” Hiromitchi looked Yamaguchi dead in the eye with as much conviction and ‘candor’ he could muster -he couldn’t let Yamaguchi know of his true objectives. “I think I like you very, very much.”

\-------

It didn’t take long before Tsukishima arrived at Yamaguchi’s doorstep. The two were childhood friends so it was only natural that they didn’t live any farther than a few houses down from one another. Tsukishima never thought he would find it so hard to walk to Yamaguchi’s house, he never knew how mentally taxing it would be just standing outside the door.

Tsukishima rang the doorbell.

_One second._

_Two seconds._

The door opened.

“Yamag-”

“Oh, Tsukishima, dear. What brings you here?” A stoutly woman with green hair opened the door. From appearance alone it was obvious that the woman was Yamaguchi’s mother.

“Good afternoon Mrs. Yamaguchi.” He gave her a slight bow and greeting then held up Yamaguchi’s notebook. “I’m here to return Tadashi’s notes. Is he home?”

Mrs. Yamaguchi accepted the book from Tsukishima’s hands. “Tadashi isn’t home right now unfortunately. He went out with a friend.” She chuckled happily knowing that her son had acquired a new friend. He wasn’t always the most courageous and extroverted of kids, so it had always worried her.

Tsukishima clearly wasn’t able to hide the disbelief on his features. Yamaguchi went out. Without him. Knowing this frustrated him to no end. But who was this ‘friend’? As far as Tsukishima was aware, Yamaguchi didn’t make any new friends as of late. _Wait…_ “Say, did he mention his friend’s name?”

“Tadashi said that the young lad’s name was Hiromitchi. He was very polite, I'm quite happy that he managed to befriend someone so kind.” Mrs. Yamaguchi sighed as she remembered all of Hiromitchi’s little actions.

Tsukishima grit his teeth to bite back a string of very unpleasant words that would most definitely disgruntle the woman in front of him. “I see, is that so.” He nodded a few times, his mood suddenly worsening yet again. _What is that bastard planning?_ Tsukishima cleared his throat. “I’ll be off, I just wanted to return Tadashi’s belongings. Have a good rest of your day Mrs. Yamaguchi.” A deep pit of enmity welled up once more as an image of Hiromitchi smirking came to mind. Tsukishima had never felt this much resentment for someone in his life. He hated Hiromitchi more than Hinata and Kageyama combined.

“…enjoyed today.”

Upon hearing a particularly familiar voice Tsukishima hid behind one of the walls. Why was he hiding? He wasn’t sure. He hadn’t done anything, but he felt the absolute need to not be found out, like he was doing something taboo. He strained to hear the rest of the conversation and peered around the corner.


	17. Money is Happiness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> post-date

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Playing with a toddler is half play and half self-defenses.
> 
> Happy reading!

Tsukishima remained silent and unmoving as he listened to the pair’s goodbyes. _Hiromitchi. Why does he keep appearing everywhere?_ He grit his teeth in irritation. Tsukishima believed he was a pretty good judge of character and from what his gut said, Hiromitchi had an ulterior motive. _That explains why Yamaguchi didn’t call or text like usual._

\------

Yamaguchi rummaged through his pocket and pulled out two small matching keychains. “I know it’s not much, but I thought that I’d get you a gift. The keychain was a combination of three small resin marbles containing preserved flowers. The marbles dangled gently on a silver chain as Yamaguchi placed it in Hiromitchi’s hand.

Hiromitchi brought the keychain closer to his face, he effortlessly identified the flowers to be yellow primrose.

Yamaguchi shuffled in place. “I asked the shop keeper what the flowers meant, and she said that Primrose flowers symbolize a new beginning, growth and hope.”

 _When did he have time to buy this without me knowing?_ Hiromitchi was rather astounded by the keychain. He wasn’t really expecting anything in return. The clear resin marbles made a quiet clinking as he held the gift close. “Thank you. It’s really pretty.” There was no double meaning in his words, he voiced exactly what he was thinking.

\------

Tsukishima wasn’t sure how much of the sappy goodbye he could take. Was this all really necessary? If possible, he would like to get out of his hiding spot and leave, but then again that would involve getting caught. He wasn’t some voyeuristic bastard who wanted to watch the pair’s sweet goodbyes. “Tch.” He clicked his tongue, it was unavoidable. _I’ve had enough._

\------

“So, I’ll see you tomorrow morning?” Hiromitchi grinned as he handed Yamaguchi his shopping bag.

Yamaguchi gratefully took the item, “Yep! At the usual time.” He chirped happily after taking in the events of the day. “Thank you again for today and the gift too. I’ll wear it tomorrow since it’ll be cold.” Just before Yamaguchi left and closed the door Hiromitchi stopped him.

There was a brief pause, “H-hey, um. Do you want to do this again… sometime?” Hiromitchi was surprised at his initiative. He wasn’t going to ask anything of the sort, besides even if he did plan to say something, Hiromitchi would have liked to ask in a much more suave fashion.

“I would lov-”

“Oh, Tadashi.” Tsukishima appeared from around the corner from his hiding spot and made it very apparent that he called Yamaguchi by his first name.

Yamaguchi’s expression grew brighter upon seeing his best friend. “Tsukki!” He opened the door fully once more so he could wave to the other tall blonde -the salty one. “How are you?”

Tsukishima walked closer and shrugged. “I'm alright. I returned your notebook by the way.” Before either Yamaguchi or -god forbid- Hiromitchi responded, he continued. “Are you still coming over for dinner on Wednesday? My mother wants to confirm one more time.” Of course, that was complete and utter bullshit. Yes, the two families were going to have dinner together, but Tsukishima’s parents never asked to confirm anything of the sort.

“Of course, Tsukki!”

Tsukishima made eye contact with Hiromitchi and displayed the most patronizing expression he could. “Shouldn’t you be heading home? It’s getting late.” He had already played his moves and there was no way Hiromitchi could follow up. Tsukishima knew he had already won this bout of words.

“Right, of course.” Hiromitchi grit his teeth but never dropped his pleasant expression. “Good night, Yamaguchi. Thanks again for the keychain.” Hiromitchi winked and blew a kiss to the green haired boy. “See you tomorrow!” Without any farther fuss Hiromitchi turned and left for home. _Tsk. The saltshaker is considerably more irritating than usual today._

**_-_ ** **\----THIRTY MINUTES LATER-----**

“Welcome back, Young Master.” Saito opened and held the door open for Hiromitchi to enter. “Dinner will be ready in a few minutes.”

“Thanks.” Hiromitchi had taken the long way home to try and organize his thoughts. The date didn’t go quite as planned but it wasn’t a complete flop either. He untied his ponytail and went straight to his room. As he began to change into his pajamas, he pulled the keychain out from his pocket. _Oh yeah, this thing._

Hiromitchi scrutinized the gift in his hand one more time. It wasn’t anything fancy. It wasn’t expensive, it wasn’t even custom made. _I could buy hundreds of these…_ But for some reason unknown to him, his hand refused to dispose of the gift. Hiromitchi had no trouble throwing gifts away prior to this one, so why was the keychain such an issue? Hiromitchi left the keychain on his desk and shrugged it off. He would think about what to do after dinner. At this very moment he was hungry, and he couldn’t think on an empty stomach.

Once he was fully dressed, Hiromitchi brought the bookmark he acquired earlier out of its bag. Previously, he had asked the retail clerk to wrap it up for him. It was a birthday gift, so it was mandatory to wrap up the item. Just like every year he rummaged in his drawer to find a purple ribbon and a name tag.

****

**_‘To Rei,_ **

**_Happy Birthday_ **

**_From Hiromitchi.’_ **

He examined the gift one more time. It was smaller than the others and wrapped in simple brown paper with a purple ribbon as the only splash of color. Hiromitchi opened a larger different drawer and dropped the now tagged gift inside. “Now that, that’s been done…”

There was a knock on the door interrupting his plans. “Young Master, I've prepared your meal.”

“Perfect.”

\-------

Hiromitchi addressed his butler after he finished his meal -dessert included. “Saito.”

“Yes, Young Master?”

“You are old, right?”

Saito almost spluttered. _The Young Master really doesn’t hold back_. “I just turned thirty-six this year.” He wasn’t quite sure why Hiromitchi suddenly asked about his age. As far as Saito was aware, he wasn’t old enough to retire.

“Ok, so tell me why money didn’t work.” Hiromitchi asked abruptly leaving Saito a little more than confused.

“I’m sorry, but I don’t seem to understand the question.”

There was a long pause as Hiromitchi considered retracting his question. Why was he asking Saito anyway? _Wouldn’t he just report everything to Aunt Clara and Uncle Gekku?_ Nevertheless, he pressed on without going into too much detail. “Why wasn’t money able to win over my date?” He furrowed his eyebrows both confused and frustrated. “You can buy everything with money.”

Saito had more than a few questions to ask but with practiced skill he kept his face neutral. “Young Master, you cannot buy true affection with money. You can buy a shallow version of it, but if you want to make lasting relationships with other people then money will not aid you.”

Hiromitchi grumbled. “But attention plus gifts is equal to love, correct?”

“No, Young Master. Love does not work that way. If someone truly loves another, it’ll be for who they are and not what can be bought for them. Just because people buy gifts does not mean the recipient is obligated to like them. If you are constantly buying too many things it may even have an adverse effect.” Saito thought for a moment. “Young Master, forgive my insolence, but your relationship with your Aunt and Uncle is far from desirable. However, they provide for you, do they not?”

 _Why is he bringing this up now? Is this a trick to get me to admit it? Did they put Saito up to this?_ Hiromitchi’s thoughts spiraled down as he slowly brought his guard back. His precautions, perhaps paranoia made it exceptionally difficult for Hiromitchi to answer any personal questions. With Saito’s sudden change in attitude it only made it more of a challenge, one that he was not going to take.

Saito pursed his lips realizing what his charge must be thinking. “Young Master. I ask this of you, not as a butler, nor a guardian or an informant. In earnest, do you have even a semblance of affection for your Aunt and Uncle?” Saito hoped his sincerity was conveyed enough in his words. This was the first time Hiromitchi had asked him about anything non-work related, this was the chance he was waiting for.

Hiromitchi furrowed his eyebrows as the seconds of silence ticked by. “They do provide for me.” _But I despise them._ He left the last part unspoken, still completely unsure of Saito’s change of heart. But Saito had reached out to him which had convinced Hiromitchi to maybe do the same. A few more seconds of silence passed over the pair before Hiromitchi fully understood. It is true that he lived a life of comfort and luxury, but he never felt anything more for his Aunt and Uncle. They were sponsors if anything.

“Money is not a substitute for ugly character, it cannot buy true friendship and sincere love. Having money does not mean you are cured of all your bad habits nor does it buy you respect.” Saito continued. “Love, like money, must be earned.”


	18. Nice Receive!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Practice makes perfect.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't mess with old people, life imprisonment is not that much of a deterrent anymore. 
> 
> Enjoy~

The air was chilly and nipped at Hiromitchi’s nose as he waited outside Yamaguchi’s house. After what Saito had shared with him the night prior, Hiromitchi wasn't able to sleep a wink. An all-nighter was rare for the privileged boy, having something to think about before bed was almost foreign. He yawned; the cold was not helping his attempts at trying to stay awake.

“Morning Hiromitchi!” Yamaguchi greeted him with a smile as he locked the door and tottered over to his friend. “How are you doing today?”

Hiromitchi gave a wave and a lopsided grin, half out of laziness and the other from how tired he was. “I couldn’t sleep at all.”

Yamaguchi’s eyebrows furrowed together in concern. “Are you alright?”

Despite Hiromitchi’s exhaustion it wouldn’t be like him to not take advantage of the situation to make a rather bold statement. “I’m alright, I'm more worried about you though.” He smirked and cupped Yamaguchi’s face in his hands. “You were running through my mind all night.”

Yamaguchi’s face heated up more from both Hiromitchi’s touch and his own flustered reaction. By now Yamaguchi would have thought that he had gotten used to Hiromitchi’s advances however he somehow still managed to prove him wrong. “H-Hiromitchi!”

A light chuckle escaped from his lips. “I’m not completely joking you know.” Immediately after speaking, Hiromitchi moved on to a different topic, he released Yamaguchi’s face and instead held both his hands. “That scarf looks lovely on you by the way.”

Yamaguchi had noted earlier when he put the thing on, that the color of Hiromitchi’s hair and the scarf were very similar, if not exactly the same. Yamaguchi hid the lower half of his face in the scarf to try in vain to conceal his unabashed smile. “Thank you.”

Tsukishima looked over to the pair but only addressed one of them. “Tadashi, how are you this morning?” He eyed Hiromitchi’s hands then Yamaguchi’s new scarf “I've never seen you wear that scarf before. Is it new?”

Yamaguchi beamed as he nodded excitedly, “Hiromitchi gave it to me as a gift.”

“While we were on our date, I thought it suited him very well, don’t you agree?” Hiromitchi emphasized the word ‘date’ in his own attempt to one up Tsukishima. Hiromitchi smiled pleasantly, perfectly hiding the smug expression that tried to grace his features. “And Yamaguchi gave me this keychain. Isn't it adorable? Though nothing could ever be as adorable as my little strawberry here.” Hiromitchi showed off his keychain before sending a wink to the ever-flustered Yamaguchi which only made the boy redden further.

Tsukishima clicked his tongue in disgust from how hard Hiromitchi was trying. _Your little strawberry? Yours? Don’t make me laugh._ He bit back the plethora of words he wanted to say, incriminating, insulting and otherwise desperate. Jealousy was not a good look on him and he didn’t want to come off as possessive. “Let’s go. We’ll be late if we don’t get moving.”

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----IN THE GYM-----**

Takeda took a deep breath and stretched with a fulfilled expression on his face. “The practice match was really surprising. I’d always heard that Aoba Johsai high school was strong, yet we ended up winning against them.” He rubbed his glasses on his sleeve to clean them. “The other team’s players, coach, and everyone watching were all surprised too.” Takeda’s eyes glimmered with pride as he looked over his boys. For their first big practice match of the year Karasuno managed to pull out a victory.

“But, it’s not enough yet.” Daichi wasn’t saying this to be a buzzkill, quite the opposite. What he wanted was the team to get even stronger. They couldn’t be satisfied with what they had now. Karasuno needed to continue evolving and fine tune their weapons. “Right now, our attacks have been successful thanks to Hinata and Kageyama’s abilities, but we can’t just rely on them.”

“Don’t worry, I’ll definitely come up with something.”

\------

The classroom was still devoid of people by the time Hiromitchi entered. _How peaceful._ He sat at his desk and fiddled with his new keychain. Hiromitchi wasn’t quite sure what possessed him to keep it, nor could he justify his actions. He was planning on doing more productive things in the morning, but he couldn’t seem to motivate himself into anything other than staring blankly out the window. Just as he began to drift off, Hiromitchi’s peace was rudely interrupted.

“Mitchi!” The door to the classroom was slammed open as Miyu called out his name.

As she neared his desk, he hastily hid away the keychain. He wasn’t sure what compelled him to do it, but it felt necessary. “Gee. Be louder why don’t you. I don’t think the next city heard you.” Hiromitchi’s response was completely unenthused as he turned to face his best friend.

She brushed away his comment with a wave of her hand, completely unbothered with his bland reaction. “Yeah, yeah. I know you just missed my beautiful voice.” She sat herself down on Hiromitchi’s desk with no consideration for his space. “You would never believe what happened.” Miyu pouted and puffed up a cheek.

“Oh? Do tell, Usagi” Hiromitchi tilted his head now intrigued at what managed to get his friend so worked up that she looked like an angry chipmunk. Hiromitchi had a feeling he knew where Miyu was going with her story. “Was it the half-sister?”

“Yes!” Miyu huffed. “That bitch went ahead and had the absolute gall to order me around and don’t even get me started on how she was able to get most of the company employees on her side.” Miyu, despite her actions and behavior, was the second daughter of a financial firm. “Can’t she just be nicer?”

“Weren’t they already on her side?” Hiromitchi deadpanned. “And besides, you showed up out of nowhere with just the clothes on your back and introduced yourself as the child from an affair. Of course, your half-sister would hate you.”

“Hiromitchi! I thought we were kindred spirits!” Miyu clutched her clothes over where her heart would be. “Fate brought us together!”

 _Both unwanted_. Hiromitchi thought bitterly to himself. “The only thing that brought us together was both our parents talking about sending us away.” He gave his signature roguish grin. “Though unlike me, you managed to bring your dearest sister over with you. I'm sure you are having quality bonding time.”

Miyu used her fingers to gently lift Hiromitchi’s chin so he was looking up at her. “Mitchi.” Her voice was soft, almost like a purr. “You and I both know. I want nothing to do with her. She is everything I hate in a person, so please never make it sound like I like her.”

Not even moments after, both Hiromitchi and Miyu burst into a fit of giggles. “God… we are so… lame, aren't we?” Miyu managed between breaths.

“Speak for yourself, Usagi”

\---------

“What’s this?” Yamaguchi held up a broken broomstick as he searched the storeroom for something to clean the floors. He was rather surprised it wasn’t already replaced with a new one. “This broom’s been broken in two. I’m going to throw it away because it’s dangerous, ok?” He held it up to show the closest member which happened to be Sugawara.

“You don’t need to! It’s fine.” Sugawara ran in a panic towards Yamaguchi. “It’s fine.” He accepted the broken item with a pained look on his face. “If we repair it, we can use it again…” Sugawara bit his bottom lip. “I’ll get some water.” In his haste he didn’t notice Sawamura join him outside of the gym.

\-------

Kageyama held the ball to his forehead and focused on his goal. The last match Oikawa had almost completely demolished the team with serves alone, this surprising development in such a short amount of time had Kageyama itching to try and learn the skill himself. He took a deep breath and threw the ball up. He took a couple paces forward and jumped. At the highest point he slammed the ball over the net with as much power and control he could put in one swing.

The ball sailed over the net with a slight curve, its trajectory perfectly aimed to the water bottle he placed on the ground. Not even a few steps away did an orange nuisance suddenly appear and try to pull a sloppy receive. The ball made contact with Hinata’s forearms and sent him tumbling back.

Kageyama watched as the ball bounced to the completely wrong direction. “Oi, don’t get in the way you stupid, idiot Hinata!” Kageyama practically growled in irritation. “That was just about to hit the target too!” He felt the frustration pool once more at his lack of practice.

“Did I do it?! Did I get the receive right?” Hinata recovered almost instantly with a dumb grin on his face.

This time Kageyama really did shout after his patience grew taunt. “You didn’t do it at all, dammit! It went out of bounds, moron!” He gestured to the volleyball abandoned on the second floor viewing area. He shook his head and took a deep breath to try and quell his thoughts as Hinata went to get the ball.

Kageyama didn’t have time to argue, he needed to perfect the jump serve in as little time as possible, _I need to get this before the next practice match._ Another serve was sent out a few seconds later. This time it was a straight shot to the water bottle.

The sound of quickened footsteps running across the gym hall threw the two other students off guard.


	19. Senpai Project

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> School projects are fun

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Turns out the answer to my problems wasn't at the bottom of this pink of ice cream, but the important thing is that i tried :D 
> 
> Happy reading!

_The sound of his serve receive was different to mine._

Kageyama and Hinata gawked wide eyed at the student who seemed to appear in front of them. Despite the student’s shorter stature, he had a fairly muscular build which seemed to match his rather unruly black hair. The tuft of blonde that fell over the student’s forehead only seemed to add to his rough and tumble aesthetic.

Kageyama had no snarky comments to say, nor any complaints, despite his serve practice being interrupted. He, as the server, was easily able to tell just how skilled the receiver was. The mystery student was able to eliminate both the strength and rotation of the serve then neatly send the ball right to the setter’s location. It was a perfect serve receive.

“Oho~ that was a pretty amazing serve.” The boy picked up his jacket then slung it over his shoulder. “A real incredible guy has joined up, huh.” other than his words the gym was silent and the air heavy.

“Heeeey! Noya!” A familiar voice broke all three students out of the tense atmosphere.

Tanaka dashed in and ran towards his friend. “Yo, Ryuu!”

The pair practically crashed into each other in their haste for a reunion. “Nishinoya!” Sawamura and Sugawara’s faces lit up as they re-entered the gym in a much better mood than before.

Nishinoya waved his arms above his head, his mood only rising. “Hey!” It seemed like forever since he last entered the gym.

Upon noticing Hinata and Kageyama’s confusion, Sawamura began the introduction. “This is Karasuno’s guardian deity, Nishinoya. He is a second year and plays as our libero.”

Hundreds of thoughts raced through Hinata’s mind but only one managed to escape his mouth unfiltered. “He is s-shorter than me!”

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----SOME HOURS LATER-----**

It was the last class before lunch and Hiromitchi couldn’t be any more ready to leave. His stomach started growling two classes ago and he needed food pronto. He kept his eyes on the minute hand of his watch, the time seemed to move at an excruciatingly slow pace.

The teacher cleared her throat before she continued to speak, this time -thankfully- not about math. “I know school practically just started but it has come to my attention that some of the upperclassmen, such as you second years, aren't doing your job to guide and befriend the new first years.” The teacher shook her head with a sorrowful sigh. “That is why the board of education has decided to implement a program called ‘The Senpai Project’. The principal has taken it upon himself to be one of the first schools to test this new idea.” At this, she noticed all her students finally paid attention.

Hiromitchi looked around the classroom and was met with other students looking just as confused as he felt. No one knew what the teacher was getting to, but it sounded like it would be more troublesome and annoying at best.

“Today all second-year students will be randomly assigned a first-year student to help out. Of course, that doesn’t mean you have to stick to them like glue. It only means that you have to help them adjust to high school life and guide them until they become second years.”

The students in the class murmured amongst themselves, clearly not liking the idea. They would be assigned a random student to babysit. All. Year. Long. Hiromitchi took a deep breath and tried to hide his incoming scowl, he didn’t want to deal with other people, especially not annoying first years. Didn’t the school know that he -like other second years- had other, more important things to do?

“Any questions?” The teacher chirped enthusiastically.

A clamor of hands went up followed by scattered voices of protest.

“Why do we have to do this?”

“We already have a lot of schoolwork to do and you want to put more?

“Is this happening like right now?”

“Do we get graded?”

“Is it mandatory? What about club activities?”

“What if the first year doesn’t want our help?”

Despite all the chaos and noise Miyu’s question brought everyone to silence. “You said that it was something you noticed. However, that alone wouldn’t be enough to catch the principal’s eye.” She sat up straight and pretended to check her nails. “Who else thought of this idea?” Miyu had an inkling of a feeling that something was up. Throughout many, many previous years, the other teachers had not ‘noticed’ any of the first and second years struggling. _So, why now?_

The teacher smiled and nodded along to Miyu’s theory. “That would be correct. The student council president came up with this idea. Yukio is such a smart girl, I’m very happy to know you share that common trait with your sister.”

Miyu flinched, not enough for most other people to notice, but more than enough for Hiromitchi to easily identify. It was no secret amongst the second years that both Miyu and Yukio were related, that their names weren’t just coincidence. It was also no secret that teachers and most students held Yukio on a pedestal as the ‘better’ sister. Elegant, kind, graceful, innocent, generous – Yukio was everything Miyu was not.

Miyu felt her chest squeeze as she feigned nonchalance. It was a feeling she was long familiar with. Envy. Her reputation was her own doing and Miyu was fully aware she had no right to complain about the situation. However, many times she denied caring about it, there was a little part of her that wondered what would have happened if she was like Yukio. Would she be liked more? Would she consider herself a carbon copy of a person she isn’t?

“Teacher, I think we are getting off track, yes?” Hiromitchi lent back in his chair and put his feet on the desk to direct all the attention on himself. He could see it on his best friends face that she was a few steps away from falling down right into the rabbit hole. No pun intended, of course.

“Y-yes, you are correct.” The teacher cleared her throat once more, a little embarrassed from her blatant favoritism. “As I was saying, we have already assigned your partners and we will be giving you their name and class now.” She walked the class and handed each student a printed sheet of their assigned student. “Before you ask, you are not allowed to switch.”

“Psstt.” Miyu whisper shouted to get Hiromitchi’s attention. She was pretty good at bouncing back, well, she would have to be considering what Miyu’s life was like. “Mitchi, look, I got your boy, Yamasushi.” She showed off her paper looking mighty smug about herself.

Hiromitchi only rolled his eyes before looking at his own assigned student. _Oh, come on. What kind of bullshit is this?_ It was safe to say Hiromitchi was very displeased about the student he received. He would rather anybody else. “Oh, come on.” He grumbled. There was absolutely nothing good that would come out of staying with the underclassman he was assigned to. Hiromitchi scowled at the paper and wanted to crumple up to throw into the incinerator. “This isn’t even fair.”

\-------

“Since I've now explained what the ‘Senpai Project’ is, I will now hand out your assigned mentors.” The first-year teacher droned on with an incredible lack of emotion in his voice. “You aren't allowed to switch.”

Yamaguchi was rather excited at the idea of the project. While he knew that for some students it would be more trouble than it was worth, he figured that the prospect of making new friends as well as learning more from his upperclassmen far outweighed the cons. Yamaguchi furrowed his eyebrows as he read the name of his ‘mentor’. He had no idea who the person was. _Miyu Sanaki?_ Yamaguchi wasn’t sure what he was expecting. There were plenty of second year students to the chances of him getting assigned to someone he knew would be slim. _It would have been nice if it was Hiromitchi though._

Tsukishima read who he was paired with in a rather resigned manner. He knew that there was no getting out of this one. For it to be a school wide project the faculty wouldn’t make any exceptions. He really, really didn’t want to have an upperclassman follow him around everywhere, or worse, tell him what to do. Tsukishima wanted to spend his time how he wanted and doing what he wanted. _Maybe they’ll leave me alone._ He focused back on reading the paper. Tsukishima’s eyes widened in shock before his expression morphed into disgust. _Lady luck really had to play me like that didn’t it?_ Tsukishima tried to find the silver lining but there wasn’t one.

“Who did you get?” Yamaguchi tilted his head in curiosity, from his best friend’s reaction it wasn’t hard to tell that the second year wouldn’t at all get along with Tsukishima.

Tsukishima practically growled out his answer. “Kanehara, Hiromitchi.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Work has been absolutely kicking my ass since valentines day is coming up. I was supposed to follow a posting schedule but uh. that didnt happen. lol. One day i'll get a regular schedule. it is not today though .


	20. Pretty Vase

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> What is a libero?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Having nutrition information on a bag of Cheetos is like having dating tips on a box of Crocs. 
> 
> Happy reading!

Hiromitchi, Miyu and a handful of other second years stood before the first year students of class four. After lunch the second years were required to meet and ‘get to know’ their partners and as a result there was a rather impressive jumble of reactions. “Students, please meet your designated partner. Take this time to ask questions and exchange contact information.” The teacher gestured to his class and waved them off. Since his job was pretty much done for the day, he just sat back at his desk and picked up a half finished sudoku puzzle.

Hiromitchi had to suppress and groan of distaste as Miyu excitedly tugged him along to their respective partners. It was more than convenient how both Yamaguchi and Tsukishima’s desks were next to each other. Miyu was absolutely elated at the state of events. She finally got to meet Yamasushi and have a front row seat in her best friend’s quest to seduce the guy. As she approached, Miyu examined the green haired boy. _He isn’t too bad._ While freckles were certainly not her thing, they did look cute on him and from his sitting position she could tell that he was just a tad shorter than Hiromitchi.

“Aren't you a cutie.” She held out her hand for Yamaguchi to shake. “Miyu Sanaki. It’s a pleasure. I've heard a lot about you.” Miyu released Hiromitchi from her hold, then leaned forward on Yamaguchi’s desk. Her pink lips held a coy smile. “All good things of course.” She purred.

“O-oh. I’m Yamaguchi T-Tadashi…” From Miyu’s closeness, Yamaguchi wasn't sure where to look. It would be rude to turn away entirely and it would be awkward to gaze into her eyes. He wasn’t sure if it was on purpose or not, but the only other option was to openly stare at her cleavage which would make him seem like a sleazy creep. “S-say um…could you move back a little? I just…um…” Yamaguchi willed himself to try and keep it together and keep his eyes away from her chest.

_Totally a bottom._ Miyu giggled and obliged to Yamaguchi’s request. “That’s no problem at all” she chirped. “Oh, here.” She handed him her phone. “Phone number, please.” Before now, Miyu had only ever asked one person for their number -that person being Hiromitchi. Usually people would ask her and not the other way around. It was a strange feeling if anything. “Let’s get to know each other.”

There was a brief pause as Miyu thought about what to say. “Hmmm, oh! I absolutely love deep pink, its color is almost maroon. It’s such a lovely contrast with my skin. My favorite animal is the bunny and I really want one for a pet.” She tapped her lips a few times with her finger as she thought. “Hmm… my favorite food is chocolate!” Miyu almost, almost considered telling him the whole truth but it wouldn’t be any good if people knew that she liked to eat Yakitori. She needed to keep up her appearances even if it meant forsaking her beloved chicken skewers.

\--------

Hiromitchi and Tsukishima stared the other down and completely ignored the conversation their respective best friends had with one another. It was painfully obvious that both parties hated the very idea of being paired together, whether it be a year or just a few minutes neither wanted to cooperate.

Hiromitchi broke the stalemate. “Tsukishima, I see you are looking as peachy as ever.”

“How nice of you to notice.” Tsukishima felt his façade of pleasantries crumble. “How unfortunate must I be to be paired with you.”

“Is that so? For once we agree on something.” Hiromitchi kept his smile up, as strained as it seemed. “I’m going to go on ahead and assume you are competent enough to not need my help. Or perhaps, I overestimated you?”

Tsukishima pushed up his glasses. “I assure you, I don’t need nor want help, yours especially. Not that you’d be very helpful in the first place anyway.”

“You are quite the jokester there, aren't you?” Hiromitchi continued to hold his smile, “People won’t like you if you always act like that. But I suppose being uncultured is part of your charm.”

The people around them could practically see the sparks fly as the tension grew ever thicker. While it was a relief that Miyu and Yamaguchi seemed to hit it off rather well, the same could not be said for their best friends. Tsukishima and Hiromitchi were practically ready to rip the other to shreds with wit and insults alone; violence was too barbaric for the pair.

“Oh, just fuck already!” Miyu interrupted both the boys and had them stunned to silence as they tried to process what Miyu had said. “We…” She gestured to herself and Yamaguchi, “…are trying to bond over here and we don’t want to be interrupted by your palpable sexual tension.” She rolled her eyes and flipped her hair over her shoulder before turning back to Yamaguchi. _Idiots, I swear._ “Yamasushi, I'm very glad you aren't like them at all. If you were, that would be an absolute travesty.”

**_-_ ** **\----AFTERSCHOOL PRACTICE-----**

“So, it’s like… and then…”

Hiromitchi raised an eyebrow at the unknown voice emanating from the gym. He had let Yamaguchi and Tsukishima go on ahead of him while he finished his ‘club duties’. As he approached, the sound of the ball being bounced became more audible over the voices. Hiromitchi entered and gave a polite wave to the third years before he was greeted with an unusual sight.

A small student with unruly hair was bouncing a volleyball off his forearms. “It goes SAA and then SUU like that,” on the last bounce he directed the ball away from himself and towards the first years to catch. “Then PON.” He stayed in receiving position as he waited for his teammate’s reactions. “That’s it.”

Hiromitchi furrowed his eyebrows and mumbled a rather snide comment. “That’s a horrible way to teach.” He shook his head. “Nobody would be able to understand that idiotic joke of an instruction.”

“Really?” Kageyama finished gulping down the contents of his water bottle before he continued. “I more or less understood it, though.”

“Ha?! Come to think of it, whenever you’re explaining something, the people around you have no idea what you are saying either!” Tanaka flailed around and confronted the black-haired boy.

Hiromitchi separated himself from that conversation and instead stuck himself beside Yamaguchi. “Did you understand any of it?”

Yamaguchi sighed and shook his head. “Not really.” He looked downtrodden at his own lack of comprehension. It wasn’t that he was incompetent it was simply because the explanation was a tad less than desirable from an objective perspective of course.

“Bastard, you are damn huge, aren’t ya!” The shortest student pointed at Tsukishima as they faced off.

Taking this golden opportunity Hiromitchi leaned closer to Yamaguchi. “Is he a team member too?” Hiromitchi scrutinized the smaller student, he could have sworn he had seen him before.

Yamaguchi nodded. “He plays the position of Libero.”

There was no response.

“O-oh! Um, well… so a Libero is a player who specializes in defense. They can’t attack with a spike nor serve. Liberos are also prohibited from completing an attack or block hit from higher than the top of the net.” Yamaguchi spoke with his head high as he recited the definition he remembered. “Libero’s replace a player in the rear guard and acts as defense.

Hiromitchi nodded along. “I see. So, a dependable presence to know that someone has your back. That sounds rather encouraging to have.” A sudden ball came hurtling towards the Libero and caused Hiromitchi to wince as he watched the student receive and return with little to no effort. _Shit, doesn’t that hurt?_

“Nishinoya, wh-”

“Ah! I remember you now!” Hiromitchi exclaimed, his voice completely overpowering every other sound in the gym. Upon noticing his outburst Hiromitchi cleared his throat then turned his volume down to normal speaking levels. “You’re the kid who got suspended because you broke that ugly vase. The vice-principal’s face was amazing when you broke his prized possession.” Hiromitchi chuckled at the fond memory.

“Everyone settle down now. It’s time to do some drills.” Sawamura clapped his hands a couple times to get everyone’s attention. “We will start with digs and sets then move on to spikes and blocks. After that we will have a water break before working on our serves.” Sawamura was aware he was assigning basic drills to his team, however, strengthening foundations was a key element in practice. He broke the students up in groups of three. “Let’s begin.”

As per instruction the students did as they were told, Hiromitchi included. He was surprised he was included in the official practice to be totally frank. He usually watched or took some occasional instruction with the help of Yamaguchi.

The group of three consisted of Yamaguchi, Hiromitchi and Kageyama.

It wasn’t a bad group, just slightly unbalanced.


	21. Sports? What’s a Sports?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lol, sports  
> good joke

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Do you know why I make puns?  
> Because it's my respunsibility!
> 
> Happy reading~

Hiromitchi waved to the Yamaguchi, Kageyama pair and took the empty space in their makeshift circle. “So, I’ve never done this drill before.” Hiromitchi gave the pair a thumbs up. “But don’t worry. I learn fast.” Yamaguchi returned the thumbs up with an encouraging smile whereas Kageyama had little to no reaction, he looked just as grumpy as always. _Ain’t he quite the charmer_ , Hiromitchi rolled his eyes internally.

Without any further time wasted, they began to pass the ball around, alternating between overhead and dig passes. While it was a drill Yamaguchi and Kageyama knew well; Hiromitchi was on the other side of the spectrum. Every time Hiromitchi would go to receive the ball with a dig, it would shakily bounce off his arm in every haphazard direction. Time and time again Hiromitchi would mess up the group’s pass streak. His arms stung, he was frustrated and felt humiliated. Hiromitchi hated being bad at things. He especially hated being bad at things publicly. It was a complete and utter walk of shame.

Hiromitchi groaned in frustration, he was so ready to quit and leave. The only thing keeping him there was the commitment he had made for Yamaguchi. “I don’t understand. Why can’t I receive it properly?” Hiromitchi knew he was at least doing some movements right. He kept his feet shoulder width apart with his legs slightly bent, he made sure the ball always contacted his forearms and paid extra care into not swinging them.

A moment of silence passed before Yamaguchi perked up. “Oh! I think I know what it is.” He had replayed each failed receive in his head and pinpointed some of the main issues. Yamaguchi stood right in front of Hiromitchi and held the boy’s shoulders. “You have to keep these square to the ball.” Yamaguchi slowly slid his hands down to Hiromitchi’s elbows. “Elbows straight for maximum control.”

Hiromitchi could feel his ears heat up as his senses tingled from the sensation of Yamaguchi’s touch. He was very not prepared for the sudden touchy-feely moment. “I-I see” Hiromitchi cleared his throat to try and cover up his stutter. He never stuttered. Clearly it was just something in this throat, right?

Yamaguchi’s fingertips caressed Hiromitchi’s forearms on the way down to gently push Hiromitchi’s wrists together. “And you want to keep these together for better form.” Yamaguchi’s thumb grazed over the mole on Hiromitchi’s left wrist. “This mole kinda looks like a heart.” He smiled at his own genius before he realized he had completely gone off topic. “Err, anyway, that’s how you u-um receive a ball.”

At this point Hiromitchi was flushed pink and his ears were on fire. _How could someone be so cute?_ Hiromitchi’s thoughts were scrambling to get themselves together after Yamaguchi completely destroyed them. _He just…Oh fuck me. This isn’t the time for a gay crisis._ Hiromitchi scoffed internally, _besides, I'm the top._ “I see, let’s give it a shot, shall we?” despite his playful voice and bright smile, Hiromitchi’s ears were still as red as ever.

Kageyama was watching the whole thing unabashedly, without warning Kageyama started to pass the ball around again.

The ball sailed through the air towards Hiromitchi. _I can do this, this is it._ The ball made contact with his forearms and went in the correct direction he aimed in. “I did it!” Hiromitchi’s face lit up like he had received the stars themselves. A few more passes in complete silence and Hiromitchi was able to cleanly return the ball at least ninety five percent of the time. “I can finally return the ball!” While the feat wasn’t as impressive as what other people could achieve, to Hiromitchi, it felt like he had hit the jackpot. In his high stupor he gave Yamaguchi a tight hug and an eskimo kiss, “Thanks for the pointers.”

Yamaguchi was taken aback by the gesture but returned it anyway. He managed to help a close friend, so it was only natural that they celebrate together. “It was no problem. I only showed you the basics, the rest was all you.” He looked to the side embarrassed but also proud of the compliments.

“You two seem very close.” Kageyama deadpanned, completely destroying the mood.

Hiromitchi nodded with renewed energy. “We are.”

Yamaguchi hastily agreed with more vigor than he knew he had.

“You and Hinata seem really close too, actually.” Hiromitchi furrowed his eyebrows in thought. It’s not like it was unusual to see the pair together, in fact it was rarer to see them apart.

Kageyama refuted the accusation faster than he could say volleyball. “We are not. The idiot is always jumping around and asking for a toss. He is always pestering me to the point where I can’t even get him off my mind.” He shook his head frustrated. “But when we do the super quick and he hits my tosses…” Kageyama clicked his tongue. “…the dumbass has his moments, I suppose.”

Hiromitchi looked between Kageyama and Hinata who was only a group over. He wasn’t quite sure if he should explain to Kageyama what that spiel of his really sounded like. Perhaps it was nothing at all.

“Alright, team!” Sawamura clapped his hands a couple times. “Time to practice our spikes and blocks. Choose a place on the net and start.”

Yamaguchi, Hiromitchi and Kageyama took their position on the right side of the court. After some short deliberation they had decided to go round-robin style, that way everyone would be able to do everything. Hiromitchi would throw the ball up for Yamaguchi to spike which would then be followed by Kageyama’s attempt to block, after five attempts they would rotate clockwise. Hiromitchi would spike, Yamaguchi would block and Kageyama would toss. After five attempts they would rotate again. At least that was the plan before they realized Hiromitchi was not versed in any of the above skills.

Yamaguchi and Kageyama decided to give a quick test to see how Hiromitchi would fare in each drill. It was soon discovered that unfortunately, Hiromitchi’s skills needed more than just a little help. While his receives weren’t too bad, his tosses were quite below average but at least they were better than his spikes -those were abysmal. Fortunately, Hiromitchi was average at one skill; it was the block. It was no exaggeration to say that his height was the main driving force of his ability.

Kageyama and Yamaguchi turned to each other then turned back to face Hiromitchi. “T-that wasn’t too bad…” Yamaguchi tried to encourage his friend.

“Yamaguchi is right, it was worse than that.” Kageyama deadpanned without a hint of restraint.

It was obvious that Hiromitchi was a brand-new player, perhaps one who picked it up as a curious hobby. “That hit me right in the heart.” He held the back of his palm against his forehead. “Oh, woe is I.”

****

****

**_-_ ** **\----THIRTY MINUTES LATER-----**

“That’s enough for today!” Takeda walked back in the gym with some papers in his hand. “You guys are going to do it again this year, right?”

The boys in the gym gravitated towards their teacher advisor. “Yes, we still need a lot more practice.” Sawamura nodded resolutely, his mind already made up.

“Do what this year?” Hinata chirped from beside him, he was restless as he bounced on the balls of his feet.

Before Sawamura was able to say anything, Takeda was just a tad bit faster. “The golden week training camp!” His eyes glittered with excitement as he pushed up his glasses. “We can finally invite the Nekoma cats.”

“Cats?”

Tanaka nodded and explained further. “We have only heard stories about them, but apparently at one point, our schools were evenly matched and got along well.”

“The former coaches in both schools were rivals so they’d often go out of their way to challenge each other. Since both teams were equally matched it was worth the trip.” Sugawara added. “It was a notorious match up. The neighborhood gave them names like, Cat vs. Crow and the battle of the garbage heap. Stuff like that.”

Yamaguchi’s mouth was slightly agape. “Wow, was it really that intense?” The first years looked around at their surrounding upperclassmen to confirm. There were nods of agreement all round.

Sawamura rubbed his chin, his eyebrows knit together in focus. “I thought we fell out of contact with them for a while now. Why the sudden change?”

“Yeah, I’ll tell you the details later, but when I heard about the existence of our well-matched rival, I wanted to have a ‘destined rematch’, no matter what.” For a split second, Takeda’s expression morphed from one of innocent glee to those of a cunning hunter. It was enough of a difference to leave Hiromitchi unsettled.

No one missed the subtle smirk Taketa wore on his face. “With Nekoma Highschool as our opponent I'm sure that ‘he’ will also be moved to action.”

Sawamura turned his attention back on his teammates. “Okay! We’re finally going to have a practice match against them, so don’t let it go to waste. Give your all in both the match and the training camp!”

The more excitable members of the club cheered with enough gusto for the whole team. “Yeah!”

_Tokyo, huh…._ If Hiromitchi remembered correctly he didn’t have anything planned on golden week. _Perhaps I can convince them to bring me along._


	22. Malicious Compliance

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Pre-golden week

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was hooked ono auctions after only going once...going twice...sold!
> 
> Happy Reading!

Unfortunately, before Hiromitchi could even ask, he was shut down.

“Hiromitchi. Hiromitchi! Boy, are you listening?” Aunt Clara glowered at him from the other side of the screen. She was fully aware that it was about to be golden week and Aunt Clara wanted to make the most of the time she was so graciously given.

“Yes, Aunt Clara.” Hiromitchi nodded, numbly. When Saito informed him that there was a pending video call, Hiromitchi figured it would be just an update from both his Aunt and Uncle; something quick and easy. Sadly, he was very wrong. He had been on call with his Aunt for over an hour and Hiromitchi hated every moment. It was a mixture of belittling, warnings, and plans; just like usual.

Aunt Cara huffed in annoyance. She had always regarded her nephew with distaste and for good reason. Hiromitchi was a stain on the family prestige. “Good, as soon as golden week starts, I want you back in Tokyo so we can prepare for the fashion show and luncheon. We still need to go over the program and finalize your role.”

Hiromitchi was always used as the living advertisement board. All he had to do was wear whatever was given to him, socialize and promote. The rest of the business and purchase related conversations were none of his concern. It wasn’t that he was incompetent -no, he wasn’t that miserable- but it was that his Aunt and Uncle didn’t want him to threaten their son’s chance of becoming the successor. Hiromitchi sighed internally then flashed a smile that didn’t quite reach his eyes. “Of course, Aunt Clara.” At the very least he had his looks going for him.

If she was being honest, Aunt Clara really didn’t want to have Hiromitchi anywhere near the event or her son. He was a lowborn that was birthed by a commoner woman. A child born out of wedlock by an eloped couple was no better than a bastard child. _I can’t even get rid of the nuisance._ Her thoughts were brought to a grinding halt. _Actually, maybe I can._ Before Aunt Clara ended the call, she hastily added another order. “I know that the daughter of a successful financial firm goes to the same school as you, Miyu was it?” She waved the uncertainty away. “Invite the girl and escort her to the party. It is very important she doesn’t refuse.” The best way to get rid of her nephew was to pawn him off to the heiress of a suitable company. It was killing two birds with one stone. The Kanehara company would be in a marriage bound partnership and she would have successfully removed Hiromitchi from the family register.

He nodded “I’ll bring her to the events without fail.” Hiromitchi knew that his aunt was referring to Miyu Yukio, the legitimate daughter and heiress. There was no way his Aunt would want him to associate with the ‘other one’. Of course, Hiromitchi was a good and obedient Nephew; it was only natural to follow Aunt Clara’s requests. _I wonder if Usagi would come with me. She is a ‘Miyu’ too after all._ Hiromitchi said his goodbyes then managed to hang up before a mischievous smirk broke to his features. _Aunt Clara didn’t specify which daughter to bring._ If he was going to follow his Aunt’s orders, then Hiromitchi was going to rock the boat as he did so.

**_-_ ** **\----THE NEXT DAY-----**

“Usagi, come with me to Tokyo.”

Miyu gasped and placed the back of her hand on her forehead in an overly dramatic pose. “We are still high schoolers! We can't elope, my love.”

Hiromitchi pinched the bridge of his nose. Miyu was his best friend and truly he did enjoy her company, but was it really necessary to act out a drama every time? “Wrong.” He shut her down faster than she could protest. “It’s about time for the company’s new clothing line to come out and there is a luncheon to promote the latest products. Aunt Clara told me to bring the ‘Miyu’ daughter to the event.”

“And you are actually going to so that?” Miyu was taken aback by his rather out of character decision, for Hiromitchi to play along without so much as a complaint was practically unheard of. “What have you done with my best friend?”

Hiromitchi broke into his signature grin. “Come on, Usagi. You know me better than that. Aunt Clara never specified which ‘Miyu’ to bring. That being said, will you join me?”

_Ah, there’s the Mitchi I know._ Miyu snickered at the brilliance of his plan. By bringing the ‘wrong’ Miyu daughter he would be able to both follow his Aunt’s instructions and spite her at the same time. She flipped her hair back barely able to suppress her giggles. “Take me shopping and I’d walk into hell with you, but for a full spa treatment I might just help you fight the devil. Aren’t I just the best, Darling?”

Hiromitchi sighed at the ridiculous endearment but decided to play along. “I’ll see you at the train station bright and early, the usual time.” He pet her head before he began his walk to his next destination. “See you then, Dearest.”

**_-_ ** **\----AT THE GYM-----**

Hiromitchi opened the metal sliding door then walked in not closing it behind him. From the number of people in the gym there were more team members still on their way, there was no point in closing it. He spotted Yamaguchi in the corner engrossed in reading a magazine of some kind. _There you are~_

Hiromitchi stealthily snuck up behind the green haired boy then gently covered Yamaguchi’s eyes with his hands. “Guess who!”

Yamaguchi was startled as his vision turned black and the smell of hot chocolate enveloped him. He recognized the owner’s voice instantly. “Hiromitchi.” As soon as his eyes were uncovered, he turned around to face the person in question. “How are you?”

“I'm all better now after seeing you.” Hiromitchi brushed a stray hair out of Yamaguchi’s face. “You are looking very cute as always.”

Yamaguchi covered his flustered face with his hands. He was never able to counter Hiromitchi’s straight forward compliments.

Hiromitchi took absolute joy in seeing the pink that covered Yamaguchi’s features. Hiromitchi pried Yamaguchi’s hands away from his face. “Don’t hide.” Hiromitchi pouted. _What a cute little strawberry._

Yamaguchi’s eyebrows furrowed as he tried his best to come up with a response. “I-I mean you are very p-pretty too…” His face only turned redder as he looked away to the side.

Hiromitchi felt his own face heat up in a similar shade of pink. “T-thanks.” He cleared his throat to clear away his stutter _. I’ve been complimented plenty of times before from a variety of different people so why am I faltering now?_ Hiromitchi wasn’t sure what his heart was doing as it pounded almost painfully in his chest. “Does that mean I’m pretty enough to be your type?”

“What are you idiots doing?” Tsukishima bulldozed right through the mood. He was very pleased that he didn’t have to see Hiromitchi on the way to school and somewhere Tsukishima hoped that he wouldn’t see him ever again. But alas, it was not meant to be. His gaze was hard as he stared Hiromitchi down.

“Ah, sorry Tsukki” Yamaguchi hastily put himself back together and picked up the magazine he didn’t know he dropped.

“I'm complimenting my adorable friend.” Hiromitchi shrugged without missing a beat. “Unlike other people who don’t seem to treasure what’s important.”

Tsukishima scowled. “Practice is going to start soon.” The tension heightened further as Tsukishima and Hiromitchi glared each other down. The annoyance and hostility practically rolled off the pair in waves. “Non-members should sit on the side and be quiet.”

“U-um, guys?” Yamaguchi squeaked to get the attention from both boys. “Miyu told me to tell you both to be nice to each other. I’d really like that too.”

Hiromitchi sighed and relaxed. “Alright then.” He wasn’t going to argue against both Miyu and Yamaguchi’s wishes. Hiromitchi glanced at his watch, “Looks like my free time ended four minutes ago.” He chuckled then turned back to Yamaguchi. “My original purpose in coming here was to wish you luck for the Nekoma match.” Hiromitchi tilted his head slightly with a soft smile gracing his features. “Good luck, my adorable little strawberry.”

“He isn’t your adorable little anything.” Tsukishima pushed up his glasses and practically growled his statement.

Hiromitchi paid no mind to the blonde as he strolled lazily out of the gym taking as much time as possible knowing and relishing the fact that it would greatly annoy Tsukishima. “Text me how the match goes!”

**_-_ ** **\----THE NEXT DAY-----**

“I had the foresight to buy the tickets online so we wouldn’t have to line up.” Miyu proudly flaunted the scan codes she paid for. She had booked the earliest possible train so there would be less people on board. “Less people means more space” She chirped happily

“Usagi, we have business class tickets. It doesn’t matter how many people are on the train, we already have plenty of space.” Hiromitchi yawned and rubbed his eyes to get the sleepy dust out of them. He would have overslept if it wasn’t for Saito. “Let’s just get on with it so I can sleep more.”

Miyu rolled her eyes and looped one of her arms around Hiromitchi’s. “Yeah, yeah, sleeping beauty. Do you want to buy a blanket too, princess?” She teased.

“Only if it’s made of silk.”


	23. Announcement

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Quick message from the author

Hey! 

This story will be on hold till my laptop gets fixed. 

Im absolutely NOT dropping this story. 

But uh, my laptop is on its last legs tbh. 

I might update still on my phone but since im not sure if the format will be pretty idk yet. 

When my laptop is fixed i'll continue this story and this chapter will be replaced with the real chapt 23.

Idk how long itll take but, uh I'll do my best to be fast. My laptop is my baby and life so it'll also hopefully get an upgrade too. Money is always missing tho. Lets be real lol.

ANYWAY,

Till Ive resurrected my baby from the dead, 

'A Taste of Summer' will be on hiatus. (Not dropped)

Thanks for reading thus far~ 

I have other HQ and BNHA stories which are actually completed if you so fancy.

Bye bye for now!

Lots of love,

Piggycat <3


End file.
